Fourteen More Days
by crazygunbladergirl
Summary: The sequel to Two Weeks. In which Naesala must come up with a plan to propose to Leanne while dodging her overprotective brother and the old crow. Let the insanity begin! Rated for the same stuff as before. NaesalaxLeanne, maybe Reysonx?
1. Chapter 1:Chaos

_Well, this is it. The sequel you've all been waiting for! For those who have not yet read Two Weeks, I suggest you read that first cuz then this will make more sense. And you'll like it, I promise! :D  
Prepare for more insanity as crazygunbladergirl presents..._

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**Fourteen More Days**

Chapter 1 -- Just Eating Fish, In Which Chaos Begins Anew

"Nestling? Nestling! Wake up! Do you have any idea what time it is?"

Our lovely friend Naesala groaned and rolled over in bed, covering his ears with a pillow. "Go away, Nealuchi!"

"The sun has been up for nine hours now! Everyone else has already eaten lunch!"

"That's nice. Now let me sleep."

"Princess Leanne is arriving in three hours!"

Naesala instantly shot out of bed and threw on his best outfit. Within the span of about five minutes he was perfectly dressed and well-groomed.

_Why didn't he wake me up earlier?_ he thought as he rushed down the hallway. _The garden hasn't been watered! The silk dresses haven't arrived! My hair is still a mess!_ He stopped to look at his hair in a mirror.

It had been three months since the end of those two weeks that had allow most of Naesala's dreams to come true. Most of them. Leanne had written to him every day, and, of course, he always responded. She was finally finished with her obligations in Gallia and was free to visit him whenever he pleased. That is, with her brother Reyson's consent. Reyson was still unsure about the whole arrangement, since his sister was so naive and her beau was a horny pirate.

However, Leanne and Reyson were now coming to stay in Kilvas for a grand total of... two weeks! Naesala had wanted more, of course, but Reyson refused. The heron prince was hopeful that since Naesala hadn't gotten into Leanne's pants during his two-week visit to Gallia, he wouldn't succeed in doing so for this two-week visit. So two weeks became the established visiting period, and Naesala already had a new plan up his sleeve.

_We're going to get married and have babies! Lots and lots of babies! 400 BABIES! Because, of course, we won't be able to keep off of each other for long--_

Naesala was pulled out of his private reverie by the sight the newly-planted garden out the window. Nealuchi had spent weeks researching what kind of plants would grow in the rocky terrain of Kilvas. The rest of the flowers were grown artificially with the aid of beorc magic, compliments of Mist, whom they had kidnapped from Crimea temporarily to help with the garden. Ike's younger sister had just been returned yesterday, along with many apologies from Nealuchi.

Naesala grinned as he looked over the garden. _She'll love it!_ he thought excitedly. _It's like Gallia and Serenes had a baby in Kilvas!_

Nealuchi stood beside him and chuckled at his king's approval. "So you've taken an interest in gardening now?"

"Of course not. I don't know what any of those flowers are called."

"Well, I came to inform you that the silk just came in. Would you like to look it over?"

Naesala's eyes lit up. "The dresses are green and white, right?"

"Yes, Nestling. There are a few ivory, champagne, and cream colors in there, too, to compliment the green. The dressmakers in Begnion suggested it," the old crow explained.

"Fine, fine. I'll look it over later."

The silk, of course, had been stolen from the merchant ships Nealuchi and the crow army attacked in their successful raid. But Leanne and Reyson didn't need to know that.

Three hours later, the heron siblings arrived from Gallia. Reyson looked quite unpleasant, but Leanne was absolutely radiant. On seeing Naesala she rushed up to him and hugged him.

"What, no kiss?" Naesala whispered.

"Reyson..." she muttered in his ear.

"Ah, I see." The realization suddenly came to him that these two weeks would be much more frustrating than he had planned. However, he knew he could easily outsmart the white prince, since he had done it several times before.

"Welcome to Kilvas, my esteemed heron friends!" Naesala exclaimed with a dramatic bow. "I do hope you will enjoy your time here."

Reyson nodded. "Yes, Leanne has really been looking forward to this visit."

"And you?"

"Um... sure."

Nealuchi came up to them. "I am sure you two are quite hungry after your long flight. We have dinner all prepared, if you are ready to eat."

"Ah, thank you, Nealuchi!" Reyson smiled. "I will admit I am a bit hungry. Come, Leanne, let's go get some dinner!"

Leanne frowned. "I want eat with Naesala."

"Ah, dear, you should probably go with your brother," Naesala whispered. "We don't want to upset him so early on."

She turned to him with determination in her eyes. "I eat with Naesala! I wanting to talk for so long!"

Reyson grabbed her hand. "He can come with us, Leanne. What do you need to talk about in private?"

"You not understand. You single." She smiled, though it was more of a smirk. "I _courting_."

_Wow, she's even more stubborn than her brother,_ Naesala thought.

Reyson sighed. "Fine, Leanne. But I'll be checking in on you every once in a while, okay?"

"Okay!" She took Naesala's hand and led him away. "See? Now we alone!"

"You don't have to be so forceful, darling. That's my job."

She sighed. "I sorry... I just miss you so much! Reyson not let us kiss..."

"Well, we could always kiss late--"

She threw her arms around him and kissed him passionately.

"Darling," he gasped once she had let go, "I think I've been a bad influence on you."

"No, not you. Lyre." She smiled innocently.

They sat out on the balcony attached to Naesala's room for dinner. Naesala suggested it, making sure that Reyson wasn't following them. _He'll get the wrong idea, as usual,_ he thought as Nealuchi came in with their dinner.

"Fresh trout with butter!" the old crow explained as he put the dishes on the table. "Nestling suggested it."

"Thank you!" Leanne exclaimed. "I like!"

Once Nealuchi had left, Leanne began to admire the view from the balcony. She marveled at the sun glittering off of the ocean, though the rocks did not necessarily appeal to her. However, she did notice a bit of greenery below.

"What that?" she asked, pointing down at the trees.

"Your surprise," Naesala answered. "But you can't see it until tomorrow."

"Why not?" Leanne frowned. "I waiting long enough."

_Because that last little bit wasn't finished... Nealuchi said he would have it done by tomorrow. I hope he was right..._ The raven king grinned. "You can't really appreciate it so late in the day. You'll need a whole day to spend in it."

"Really?" Leanne's eyes widened with excitement. "Can't wait!" Then she looked out over the ocean at the slowly setting sun. "So many colors," she whispered. "Ocean pretty."

"You think so?" Naesala grinned. _Excellent, she'll want to stay if she can see the ocean every day! One more point for me!_

Leanne nodded. Then she asked, "Sunrise pretty?"

"I guess so. I haven't watched it in a while." He was usually still fast asleep at that point.

"Maybe, tomorrow... you watch sunrise with me?" she asked hopefully.

"Watch the sunrise with you? From the balcony, you mean?"

She smiled and nodded.

_How romantic would that be! Oh, Leanne, you're certainly getting good at this!_ He grinned. "Of course I'll watch it with you tomorrow! Just make sure Reyson doesn't find out."

Naesala then heard a light cough from the other side of the door.

"Dammit, he's listening in on us," he whispered.

"Reyson?"

"Yes." Then he got a brilliant idea. "Leanne, I have a brilliant idea. Play along." He took up a forkful of fish and slowly ate it from the fork, making loud "yummy" noises. "Oh, you're _so_ good... _so good..._" He let out a sigh. "I've waited so _long_ to taste you..."

Leanne caught on and took up a bit of fish. "Mmmm..." she sighed.

"You're so _delicious_... Give me more!"

Reyson burst through the door onto the balcony. "NAESALA!! JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU're..." His voice trailed off as they looked at him in mock confusion.

"We're just eating our fish, Reyson," Naesala explained with an innocent expression. "What did you think we were doing?"

Reyson tried to formulate words from his mouth but was failing miserably. "Wh... ng... y... mh..." He then let out a frustrated groan and stormed off.

Naesala grinned. "He certainly has a dirty mind. We were just eating _fish_..."

Leanne let out a burst of laughter. "You so bad! You make Reyson upset!"

Naesala turned to her. "Well, darling, that was fun. I think I've found a way to make this little visit more entertaining."

"Now we kiss?" she asked.

"Of course, darling."

After dinner they returned to the main hall, where Reyson was waiting. His frown showed that he was still upset at Naesala for his little trick.

"Aw, come on, Reyson! Can't you take a little joke?" Naesala asked him in a casual tone. "Your sister thought it was funny."

"I'm going to get a heart attack before these two weeks are over," Reyson muttered. "Father told me to keep watch on Leanne."

"Fine, fine." Naesala stretched his wings. "Well, Leanne, would you like a tour of the lovely grounds of Kilvas?"

The heron princess shook her head. "I sorry. I tired. Long day. Maybe tomorrow."

"All right, then. Good night, Leanne!" Naesala glanced over to Reyson, who was watching them carefully. "Can I at least give her a good night kiss?"

"I suppose..."

Naesala leaned in and kissed her lightly on both cheeks before touching on her lips. "Good night."

"Night-night!" Leanne smiled and ran off to her room.

Reyson sighed. "Please, Naesala, at least behave yourself for this trip."

"What, do you want me to have her in by sundown every night, and I'm not allowed in her room without a chaperone?" the raven asked mockingly.

"Something like that..."

"Reyson, Reyson..." Naesala walked over to him and gave him a pat on the back. "I am going to make sure to find a woman for you so that you'll lighten up."

Reyson rolled his eyes. "Thank you, I guess, but I really don't have time for that sort of thing."

"Oh, you _will_, my friend! You will _make_ time when the right girl comes along!" Naesala winked. "How about a drink?"

"You know how I despise your rum..."

"Oh, party-pooper." Naesala laughed and began to walk off.

Suddenly, he heard Reyson gasp behind him. "Wait, Naesala! You better not be drinking with her! You're bad enough sober, but if you're both under the influence who knows what you'll do!"

Naesala turned around and grinned. "Who knows? We could always find out."

Reyson glared at him. "You're so impossible sometimes..."

"Jo-king!" Naesala shook his head. "I'll see you tomorrow, then. Good night!"

"Good night," Reyson muttered.


	2. Chapter 2:Awkwardness

_Wow this turned out to be reeeaaaallly long! But I just had to fit it all in! Um... If anyone has any requests for Reyson's girlfriend let me know cuz I'm all out of ideas lol._

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Chapter 2 --Awkwardness, In Which There is Nudity and Drinking

A sharp knock on his bedroom door awakened Naesala from his heavy sleep.

"Muhh..." was all he could manage to say.

"Wake up, Naesala! Sun is rising!" Leanne's excited voice sounded too awake for this time of day.

Naesala heard her open the door and come into his room.

"Wake up, silly! Don't you want see?"

"Go back to sleep," Naesala groaned, rolling over in bed.

Leanne huffed. "It pretty! I watch sunrise with you! You promise!"

_It's too early in the morning,_ he thought. _Why does the sun have to rise so damn early?_

Leanne huffed again, and suddenly he felt the covers come off, and he was really cold. Then he heard an embarrassed squeak, so he opened his eyes and realized with a mix of horror and excitement that...

_Oh my gosh, Leanne just saw me naked! Crap, Reyson's gonna end up popping in right now and--_ Then he grinned mischievously. _Heh heh, Leanne just saw me naked! This is awesome!_ "Whoopsies," he exclaimed as he quickly covered himself up to his waist. "Gosh, Leanne, I think my horniness has really begun to rub off on you!"

Leanne's face was bright red. "I sorry... I not know you sleep no clothes," she whispered.

"You mean you _wear_ clothes to bed?" he asked in astonishment.

"Yes."

_Well that's going to change when we get married,_ he thought with a smirk.

"I really really sorry!" She looked close to tears now.

"Oh, Leanne... Don't get upset. It was an honest mistake." He got up, keeping the blanket around his waist to avoid any further awkwardness, and grabbed some clothes. "You wait for me on the balcony, okay? I'll watch the sunrise with you, so cheer up!"

Leanne instantly brightened and ran out onto the balcony.

_Ugh, I hope she doesn't make me get up this early every morning..._ he thought groggily as he threw on some clothes. _It's too early..._

Once he was dressed he joined Leanne on the balcony. The heron princess was already marveling at the view.

"Sunrise so pretty!" she exclaimed. "Why you not like?"

"I like it," he replied. "I just don't like waking up early." He put his arm around her and looked out over the ocean. The view certainly was beautiful. Naesala realized that he hadn't watched the sunrise like this in several years. "It really is lovely," he whispered.

"You get up early more?" she asked hopefully.

"Um... definitely not." She frowned. "Well, maybe every once in a while." This cheered her up somewhat.

Then she looked down. "Naesala?"

"Yes, darling?"

"I being too... er... demunding?"

"Demanding, you mean?"

"Y-yes. I being too demanding?" she asked.

Naesala laughed. "You're like your brother. I expect you to be demanding."

"But... too much?"

Naesala thought for a moment. "Maybe a bit... too much..."

She sighed. "I trying to make good... im-pres-sion. But I think I trying too hard."

"Oh, Leanne..." He turned her around so she could look into his eyes. "You don't need to make a good impression on me! You already have!" He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"But... I not like you. You so...er... dirty-minded. I too innocent," she explained.

"Trust me, darling, you don't want to be like me," Naesala replied with a laugh. "One horny person in a couple is good enough. Besides, you're cute when you're so naive."

Leanne giggled. "You right. I being silly." Then she sighed. "I not have listened to Lyre."

"Lyre? That silly empty-headed cat? Why are you getting advice from her?"

"She tell me. I not ask."

"Well, darling, don't listen to Lyre anymore. You're fine the way you are." He pulled her closer and whispered, "In fact, you're practically perfect."

Leanne wrinkled her nose. "Cheesy," she remarked.

"I thought you liked cheesy?"

"I do." She giggled. "I just letting you know." Then she looked below the balcony, where her "surprise" was still waiting for her. "Naesala, show me surprise! I waiting long time!"

"Right now? I suppose... Don't you want breakfast first, though?"

She shook her head. "Food can wait."

"All right..." He lifted her up into his arms and flew off of the balcony toward the ground. The lush grasses and trees seemed out of place with the rocky surroundings, but Leanne thought they were lovely.

"Green here?" she asked. "I thought all brown."

"This is part of your surprise, darling," he explained with a grin. "Come this way." He led her through a small trail lined with apple trees. Soon they were in a grassy clearing that looked like a miniature version of the courtyard in Gallia. Flowers were blooming in just about every color, and there were even butterflies fluttering about. In the center of the garden lay a small grove of cherry trees.

Naesala heard a gasp and looked over at Leanne, whose eyes were wide in excitement. A big grin slowly stretched across her face.

"This is your surprise."

Leanne turned to him. "F-for me?"

"Yup. All for you."

She squealed with delight and threw her arms around him. "Naesala! Thank you thank you thank you!!"

Naesala laughed. "I take it you like it!"

"Yes!" She pulled away and ran into the garden, marveling the sheer beauty of the flora and fauna.

_I knew she'd like it_, he thought as he watched her frolic around. _She looks so happy... She'll have no choice but to stay now! Another point for me!_

However, the adorable moment was interrupted by Naesala's stomach growling.

"Ugh, I guess we have to go eat breakfast," he groaned. "Your brother's probably looking for us, anyway..."

Leanne sighed. "Yeah... we come back, right?"

"Of course! Maybe we'll even show Reyson. Then he'll like me more."

They entered the dining room to find that Reyson had just gotten there.

"Oh, Naesala? You're up earlier than usual," he remarked, his face frowning in suspicion.

"We watch sunrise!" Leanne exclaimed. "And Naesala make me garden and it so pretty!"

Reyson's eyes boggled. "You _what_?"

"Yes, Leanne saw her surprise today," Naesala explained as he sat down at the table. "You should come see it, too. You might like it."

"A g-garden? _Here_?!" Reyson was still in shock.

"It has cherry trees and pretty flowers!" Leanne told him.

Nealuchi came into the room. "Ah, has Princess Leanne seen the surprise yet?"

"Yeah, I just showed her," Naesala said with a grin. "Good job on it, by the way."

The old crow chuckled. "Anything for the lovely Princess Leanne!" Then he leaned in closer and whispered into Naesala's ear. "Did you show her the other part, Nestling?"

"Is it finished?" the raven whispered back.

"Not yet. But it looks good enough."

"Nah, I'll wait until it's finished. How long do you think it'll take?"

"A few more days, maybe." Nealuchi chuckled. "We may have to kidnap the lady Mist again."

"What are you two whispering about?" Reyson asked suddenly.

"Kilvas business, O Nosy One," Naesala replied with a smirk. "Don't worry about it."

Reyson frowned at the name and shoved a piece of toast into his mouth.

After breakfast they all went out to see the garden. Reyson was absolutely astonished. Naesala could tell that he hadn't been expecting the surprise to be so grand.

"Naesala, did you really do this for Leanne?" he asked the raven once Leanne had gone off to play with the butterflies.

"Of course! You know I'm not fond of flowers."

Reyson laughed. "So true. But still... she's really happy." He watched as his sister caught a small white butterfly. "I guess all I can say is... thank you."

Naesala glanced at the heron in surprise. "For what?"

"For making her happy. I was so worried that she would get upset by the rocks and stuff here," Reyson explained.

Naesala grinned. "_You_ were worried? So you secretly support our little courtship after all, hm?"

Reyson rolled his eyes. "I still have my doubts. I just thought she would get bored without a garden to be in. You know how much she loves green."

_Deep down he likes the idea of us together,_ the raven thought. _He's just too stubborn to admit it._

Reyson sighed and walked off to join his sister, while Nealuchi sidled up to the raven king.

"Prince Reyson certainly could use a lovely young wife," Nealuchi mumbled. "I wonder why he hasn't begun looking?"

Naesala laughed. "Maybe we could spur him on a little? I'm sure there's a girl here who could handle him."

The two herons finally returned. Leanne was absolutely glowing in excitement, and even Reyson seemed happy.

"Picnic! We have a picnic out here!" Leanne exclaimed.

"Not today, darling. It's too late now." Naesala sighed. _That would be wonderful, but we'd have to distract Reyson somehow._ Then the perfect idea came to him. "Ah, how about we have a celebration? An evening toast?"

Leanne nodded. "Like!"

"Nealuchi! Bring out the wine!" Naesala grinned. "We should celebrate the completion of the garden!"

The old crow nodded and fluttered off to get the alcohol.

Reyson gasped and turned to Naesala. "W-wine? Don't you have anything... non-alcoholic?"

"Where would the fun in that be?" Naesala asked him. "Come on, I know you at least drink wine."

"Yes, but Leanne..."

Leanne cocked her head in confusion. "What wrong?"

"Leanne, you've had alcohol before, right?" Naesala asked.

"What alcohol?"

Reyson glared. "No, she's never had alcohol before! What if she doesn't like it?"

_Poor Leanne... you've been so sheltered! Once we're married we're drinking wine every night!_ Naesala sighed. "Don't worry about it. She'll like it. It's not strong."

Nealuchi soon returned with a few bottles of red wine and some glasses. "I got the good stuff, Nestling! How about we sit under the cherry trees?"

After the wine was poured and the toast was made, everyone turned to Leanne. She had no idea what the dark, red liquid in her glass was, but she wanted to be polite. She slowly raised the glass to her lips.

Naesala made a quick glance at Reyson, who looked like he was about to have a heart attack. _Come on, she'll have to try it sooner or later..._

She took a small sip and blinked. "What this?" she asked.

"It's wine, Leanne. Do you like it?" Naesala looked at her hopefully.

Leanne smiled. "It in-ter-es-ting... I like a little."

Naesala heard Reyson let out a deep sigh. "There, see? I told you she'd be all right with it," he told the frantic heron.

The evening continued with various conversations and several refills. Leanne had stopped drinking a while ago because she noticed that it was making her head feel fuzzy, and Nealuchi took his final gulp because he didn't want to use up anymore wine. But Naesala and Reyson were still happily drinking glass after glass.

"Ssso then I tell Ranulf, I says, 'I dunno if i's a good idea cuz he'sss a raven.' But I tellss ya, you been purty good, Naesssala!" Reyson slurred.

"Well, I'm glad you think that way, Reyson," Naesala replied with a smirk. "I think if you give it a chance you'll find that your sister will be well taken care of."

Leanne stared at her brother as he began to sway back and forth. "Reyson, what wrong? Look sick!"

"'Ss nothing, Leanne! I'm jus' dandy!" However, Reyson could barely hold up his wine glass.

Leanne anxiously tugged on Naesala's sleeve. "Reyson acting funny," she whispered.

"That's because he's drunk, Leanne," the raven calmly replied, though he was having trouble suppressing his laughter. "That's what happens when you drink more wine than you can handle. He'll be fine by tomorrow, though he might be a little sick."

"Hey, Nealuchi! Give me another shot!" the heron prince called.

"N-no, Prince, I think you've had plenty," Nealuchi told him, making sure to hide the bottle.

"Reyson, when's the last time you drank?" Naesala asked in amusement. "You don't seem to have the art of it down very well."

"Dunno... maybe i' wasss..." However, Reyson fell over to the ground before he could finish.

Naesala finally burst out laughing. Leanne could sense from the other two that this was nothing for her to worry about, but she went over to her brother to see if he had passed out. Then she sighed. "Reyson, you bad, bad boy!" She shook her head. "Naesala, he in big trouble!"

"Well, I think that's enough wine for tonight," Naesala said as he stood up. "Nealuchi, could you take Reyson back to his room?"

"Of course, Nestling." Nealuchi went over to the heron and picked him up.

"Ah, Leanne?" Naesala turned to the heron princess, who was in the middle of scolding her unconscious brother. She stopped and ran up to him. "When he wakes up, he'll probably feel sick, and I'm sure he'll be in a bad mood. Just to warn you."

Leanne nodded. Then she asked, "How come you not like that?"

"I have a higher alcohol tolerance than Reyson," the raven explained. "Man, he's gonna be so pissed when he finds out that I stayed sober the whole time!" He laughed again.

_--the next morning--_

"Unn..." Reyson slowly opened his eyes. He felt incredibly sick, and he had a pounding headache. Suddenly, he noticed Leanne and Naesala looking over him, with amused expressions on their faces.

"Good morning, sweetie," Naesala crooned. "How are you?"

"Shut up... I didn't think I would get that drunk..."

Leanne frowned. "Reyson! Why you drink so much? If Father find out you in big trouble!"

Reyson groaned. "I thought that if I helped use up the wine then Naesala wouldn't get drunk and try to do anything stupid..."

Naesala cracked up. "_That's_ your reasoning? That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! You know your tolerance level is crazily low..." Then he grinned. "If it makes you feel better, I didn't do anything you would consider stupid. You're the only one who got that drunk."

"Ugh..." Reyson rolled over. "I think I'm gonna be sick..."

Naesala grinned and left the room, satisfied that now he not only had a new story to blackmail Reyson with, but now he had a great back-up plan for getting rid of Reyson when he wanted alone time with Leanne.


	3. Chapter 3: Sunbathing

_This chapter was getting insanely long so I had to split it into two chapters. Yay beach party! This chapter has been the most fun to write so far, so I hope you enjoy it!_

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Chapter 3 -- Sunbathing, In Which the Lovebirds Fall Alseep in a Questionable Position

Naesala was getting dressed that morning with a singular goal in mind: spend an entire day alone with Leanne. Now, he knew this would be nearly impossible with all of Reyson's snooping, but he could at least keep the White Prince distracted for most of the day. After all, the poor heron was still suffering from his hangover.

_How will I accomplish this?_ the raven asked himself as he meticulously groomed his hair. Then he looked out of his window and thought of the perfect plan. _We'll spend an entire day at the beach! That way we'll be able to sneak off to a secluded cove and enjoy each other's company without Reyson finding us!_

The other perk of going to the beach was, of course, that he could show off his fabulous physique by using the excuse of "sunbathing."

_Ooh, I wonder if I could get Leanne to sunbathe?_ he thought with a playful smile. He eagerly ran down to the dining room to share his clever plan with the others.

Reyson, however, was not so enthusiastic. "What would we do at the beach, Naesala? We can't go swimming like the beorc do at the beach."

Naesala grinned. "Reyson, there are _plenty_ of things to do at the beach! But if you don't want to come then fine. Leanne and I will go by ourselves." He winked at Leanne.

"No way!" Reyson shouted. "I'm going with you! Perhaps Nealuchi would want to come, as well?"

Naesala stopped. _Dammit, Nealuchi knows where all of the secluded spots are..._ "Ah, well, I don't think Nealuchi likes that sort of thing. Besides, he has work to do," the crow quickly replied. _If he doesn't have anything then I'll find something for him to do._

"That's too bad," the heron prince remarked.

Naesala quietly sighed in relief. "Well, I will go inform Nealuchi of our plans. You two get ready." He got up and left to find the old crow, imagining how Leanne would look in a bathing suit.

He soon spotted Nealuchi on his way to the dining room and stopped him. "Ah, Nealuchi, what are your plans for the day?" he asked casually.

"Oh, good morning, Nestling! Actually, I don't think I have anything plan--"

"Could you write a letter to Tibarn and then check on the garden?"

Nealuchi looked puzzled. "What do you want me to tell Tibarn?"

"Uh, I don't know, maybe... just tell him how you're doing. You know, you guys are good friends, and--"

"Nestling, what are you planning _this_ time?" Nealuchi asked with a sigh.

Naesala gulped. "Leanne and I are going to the beach. Reyson's tagging along. I need you to pretend you're busy so you can't go." He figured that the old crow would have found out anyway.

Nealuchi chuckled. "Nestling, wouldn't it be better if I went along to distract Prince Reyson so he wouldn't see whatever it is you're planning to do with Princess Leanne that I don't know about?"

Naesala's eyes widened. "Nealuchi, you're a genius!" he exclaimed. "But you have to promise that's _all_ you'll do! No snooping around!"

Nealuchi grinned. "Of course I won't snoop around! Why would I do a thing like that?"

_He's scary when he acts like me,_ Naesala thought. _I don't really trust him, but I do need someone to distract Reyson..._ "All right, you can come along."

Naesala then returned to the dining room and explained to Reyson that there was a change of plans, and Nealuchi would be accompanying them. The White Prince seemed very much relieved by this. The four of them soon departed for the beach. The weather was warm and sunny, perfect for a beach adventure.

As soon as Naesala landed he threw off his jacket and shirt and boots and lay in the warm sand.

Reyson stared at him in bewilderment. "Naesala, what are you doing?"

"Sunbathing," the raven casually replied. "You should try it, Reyson. You're so pale. You need some sun."

"Herons are always pale," Reyson explained. "I refuse to take off my shirt. It's improper. You don't see Nealuchi doing it!"

However, Nealuchi had also stripped down to his waist and was enjoying the sun. "I must admit, Prince Reyson, it is very relaxing," the old crow remarked.

Reyson was utterly at a loss for words.

Naesala looked over at Leanne, who was wearing a lightweight sundress. "Leanne, why don't you try sunbathing?" he suggested.

Leanne cocked her head. "I take off dress?" she asked.

_YES! Take it off! Take it off!_ However, Naesala knew that he needed to control himself with Reyson standing right there. "Ah, well... if you want to."

Reyson glared at him. "She doesn't want to!"

Leanne giggled, unsure of what had just happened, and lay down in the sand next to Naesala. "I guess I not do it right," she remarked sadly.

"No, you'll at least get some tan on your face and arms," Naesala assured. "Though if you wanted a tan on your legs you could hike your dress up."

Reyson watched helplessly as Leanne pulled her dress up to her knees.

"This good?" she asked.

"You could always go higher--"

"Yes, Leanne, that's good," Reyson interrupted.

Naesla rolled his eyes. _I wasn't really even planning anything that time,_ he thought.

Reyson watched the sunbathers for a few minutes before finally reluctantly removing his shirt -- er, jacket-thing that he wears. "Fine, I'll try this sunbathing thing," he muttered as he lay down in the sand.

Naesala, meanwhile, found himself admiring Leanne's legs. _She always wears those long dresses... I never realized she has such lovely legs... I wish I could see more..._

Leanne glanced at him and giggled at his mesmerized state. "Naesala, you silly," she whispered. "You not even see Reyson now sunbathing."

"He is?" Naesala snapped out of his daydream. He looked over at Reyson, whose pale chest was whiter than the sand. Then he got a wonderful idea. "Okay, Leanne, have you ever built a sand castle before?"

"I never go to beach like this before. What sand castle?"

"You build a castle out of sand," Naesala explained. "You can also bury someone in the sand and build the castle on top of him."

Leanne laughed. "Why you do that?"

"Because it's fun!" He glanced over at Reyson. "Your brother is the perfect target right now."

Leanne gasped when she realized what was going on. "Oh, Naesala, you so bad! We go bury him!"

"We have to be sneaky, now," Naesala warned. "Otherwise he'll escape before we're done."

Leanne nodded and grinned. The two of them quietly got up and snuck over to Reyson.

His eyes were closed, and Leanne whispered, "He asleep."

"Excellent." Naesala cupped some sand in his hands and put in on top of Reyson. Leanne followed, and for about ten minutes they covered him with sand. Then they packed it down to the point where Reyson would not be able to get up by himself. He was completely buried in sand except for his head.

The two pranksters admired their handiwork. Nealuchi looked over at them and chuckled lightly before closing his eyes again.

Then Naesala realized something: he and Leanne were now free to make the perfect getaway. Nealuchi wasn't looking, and Reyson was trapped in the sand.

He leaned over to Leanne and whispered, "Follow me."

"Where we going?"

"Shh. I know a place where we can be alone."

Leanne's eyes lit up, and she eagerly followed him away from the other two. They flew along the coastline for a while until they reached a small cove. They landed on the sand, and Leanne excitedly took in the surroundings.

"It so pretty!" she exclaimed. "I like!"

"I thought you would!" Naesala told her. "See, it's surrounded by high rocks, so it's hard to find unless you already know where it is."

Leanne smiled. "Finally! We alone!"

They sat down on the sand and talked, Leanne leaning against his chest while his arm was around her. They covered a range of topics, from Ranulf's situation with Lyre to Skrimir's latest hunting victory to Nealuchi's balding head.

They were in the middle of discussing how Reyson would get out of the sand castle when suddenly a larger-than-usual wave washed up.

"Leanne, look out!" Naesala tried to spread out his wings to cover her, but it did little good. They both got completely soaked.

Leanne spit out some water and clung to Naesala. "I scared!" she squeaked.

"It's all right, Leanne. It's just water! I got you."

She slowly opened her eyes and looked at him. "You wet," she noted when she saw his dripping hair.

"So are you, silly. Why don't we move away from the water? The tide must be coming in."

They walked over to the end of the cove and tried to wring the water out of their clothes and hair. However, Leanne was still uncomfortable in her long dress.

"I want to take off," she told him, "but I not."

"How come? It's just me," he remarked with a grin. "Do you have anything on underneath?"

"Yes, but..."

"Then don't worry about it. Reyson won't flip if he somehow manages to find us." _Though I wouldn't mind if she had nothing on underneath,_ he thought.

Leanne blushed and took off her dress, revealing a shorter sleeveless underdress.

"What's wrong with that?" he asked, satisfied with the fact that it showed off her legs to her mid-thigh.

"It so short," she whispered.

Naesala laughed. "Oh, Leanne, you look fine. Besides, it shows off your legs, which look great, by the way."

Leanna giggled. "You being horny again."

"Somewhat." He leaned over and kissed her.

"You get in trouble," she whispered with a smile.

"There's no one here," he pointed out. "I don't know why you're embarrassed, anyway. I'm completely topless."

She laughed. "You go totally naked if you could, like how you sleep. But you look good... top-less."

Naesala grinned. "I'd hoped you'd like it. You just can't resist this!"

They both laughed and hugged. The sun was beginning to set, and Naesala was glad that for once his plan had worked. The scenery was beautiful, and the sea air was so relaxing. Naesala didn't even realize that Leanne had fallen asleep in his arms at first because he was so relaxed. He thought about waking her up, but she looked so cute curled up against his chest.

_This has been the perfect day,_ he thought with a smile. Then he kissed her hair and whispered, "I love you."

Before long, he, too, had fallen asleep. They would have stayed like that all night if Nealuchi hadn't found them. The old crow chuckled quietly when he saw them sleeping so peacefully.

_What would Prince Reyson say?_ he thought. He almost wanted to find out, but then he decided to spare Naesala the headache of dealing with the heron prince. "Rise and shine, you little lovebirds!" he shouted.

They woke with a start. Naesala realized that it was almost dark. Then he saw Nealuchi standing over him and Leanne.

"We weren't doing anything!" Naesala exclaimed as he sprang to his feet. "We just happened to fall asleep like this, but there was no intercourse involved! Just ask Leanne!"

The frantic heron princess nodded in agreement.

Nealuchi laughed. "I know you weren't doing anything. Good thing I found you before Prince Reyson did! He's already quite upset about the sand incident." Naesala grinned. "Though, I must say," the old crow continued, "you two looked quite adorable when you were asleep!"

Naesala blushed, as did Leanne. "L-let's go back!" he stammered.

They flew back to the main beach, where Reyson was impatiently waiting.

"What were you doing?" he asked Naesala as soon as he landed. "You better not have been fooling around with my sister, or you'll be in big trouble!"

Naesala rolled his eyes. "Relax, Reyson. We were just sitting and talking, weren't we, Leanne?"

Leanne nodded.

Then Reyson noticed her clothes. "Leanne, where are your clothes?" He gasped and turned to Naesala. "I knew you were up to no good! I should never have agreed to your silly sunbathing game!"

"I get wet!" Leanne quickly explained. "Big wave! Naesala try to protect me, but I get wet and my dress get not comfy, so I take off! That all, Reyson!" Then she let out a small squeak. "Oh no! I leave dress back!" she exclaimed.

"That's all right, Princess. I'll go get it right now," Nealuchi assured her. "I'll meet you back at the castle." Then he flew off.

Naesala sighed. "I guess we should head back. It's pretty dark."

They all flew back to the castle and ate a quick dinner.


	4. Chapter 4: Sunburn

_Sorry for the delay. I've been out of town... As someone who burns very easily I thought it would be funny to include sunburn in the aftermath of the beach trip. Enjoy! :D_

* * *

Chapter 4 -- Sunburn, In Which There is a Lot of Aloe Rubbing

Naesala, Leanne, and Reyson were quietly finishing dinner that night when Leanne suddenly broke the silence.

"I red!" she exclaimed.

"What do you mean, Leanne?" asked her brother.

"My skin all red," she explained, showing him her arm, "and it hurt!"

Naesala laughed. "Oh, Leanne, it's just sunburn. Don't worry about it."

Reyson looked at his own arms and realized that he, too, had sunburn. "Naesala! This isn't funny! What is this?"

"Sunburn," Naesala repeated. "You get it from being out in the sun for too long. I guess you woodland folk don't get it as much. You usually get it worse here down south. I'm sure I've got some, too, but not as bad 'cause I'm used to it."

Leanne looked at him wide-eyed in fear. "What happen now?" she squeaked.

"It'll be like that for a day or two, but then it'll turn into a nice tan. You don't have it as bad as Reyson."

Reyson glared at him. "It was because of that sunbathing, wasn't it?"

Naesala shrugged. "Yeah, but you would have gotten it anyway. Just not all over."

Leanne's eyes started to get teary. "It really hurt, Naesala! I not like!"

_They're so pale; no wonder they burned so easily..._ Naesala stood up. "I've got some stuff you can put on it to make it feel better. Here, I'll go get it." He went to his room to get the aloe and stopped to look in his mirror. _Hm, I've got it pretty bad, too. I better put some on when they're done._ Then he returned to the dining room to give the sunburnt herons the aloe.

"This is aloe," he explained. "You rub it on the burned skin two to three times a day until it stops hurting. I'd suggest putting it on before you go to bed."

The two herons nodded.

"Leanne, you can put it on first," Reyson offered.

Later on that night, Naesala was on his way to his room when Leanne stopped him.

"Naesala? I need help."

"What is it, darling?"

Leanne held up the aloe. "I not reach my back. Can you help?"

Naesala grinned. "Of course!"

They went to Leanne's room. She unbuttoned the back of her dress so he could rub the aloe on, but she made sure to keep everything else covered.

"No more than that," she warned with a giggle.

"Aw, Leanne, you're no fun!" Naesala rubbed the aloe on her back and shoulders. "How's my backrub?" he asked as he massaged the aloe into her shoulders.

"Really... good," she sighed. "You do backrub more often?"

"Whenever you want, darling." Then he leaned forward and kissed her neck.

"Ooh!" she squeaked. "Sunburn!"

"Oh, sorry! Haven't you put aloe on it yet?"

"Not yet."

Naesala took some more aloe and rubbed it on her neck.

"Thank you," she told him softly.

"Anywhere else?" the raven asked, somewhat hopefully.

"Um..." She turned to him and blushed. "Not do face yet."

Naesala smiled. "Alright, I'll put some on your face." He put some on her nose, and the cold ooze made her giggle.

"Tickles!" she exclaimed.

"Really? I didn't know you were ticklish!" Naesala remarked mischievously. "Where else are you ticklish?"

Leanne shook her head. "Not tell you! Put aloe on cheeks. They hurt lot."

He gently rubbed the aloe into her cheeks but continued to hold her face in his hands when he was done.

"Your lips aren't burned, are they?" he asked.

"No, they feel good."

He leaned in and kissed her. Even though they had kissed several times by now, each time felt just as magical as the first one.

Finally, Naesala backed away and looked her over. "Anywhere else?" he asked again.

"No... but I wish was anywhere else."

Naesala handed her the bottle. "You can put it on me if you want."

Leanne giggled and took the bottle. Then she buttoned up the back of her dress. "In case Reyson walk in," she explained.

"Good idea." Naesala took off his jacket. "Go for it. I haven't put any on yet. But you have to do something different if you plan on kissing me."

She laughed. "Okay, I think of something."

He felt her soft hands rubbing the aloe on his shoulders.

_This is... absolutely heavenly,_ he thought. _And we're not 'fooling around' so Reyson can't yell at us if he walks in on us!_

Leanne finished with his back and moved on to his chest.

"Careful now," he told her. "You might lose control while touching my sexy chest."

Leanne giggled. "It very nice. But I keep con-trol."

She began to rub the aloe on his chest, but then she stopped and gazed into his eyes.

"What is it?" he asked.

She reached up and kissed him. "You like?" she asked.

"Good! I like it!" He grinned. "You're learning fast!"

She giggled and finished putting aloe on his chest and face. Then she leaned against his chest.

"I'm surprised Reyson hasn't walked in," Naesala whispered. "This seems like the time when he usually walks in on us."

Just then, they heard Reyson knock on the door. "Leanne? Are you finished with the aloe?" he asked in the heron tongue.

"Dammit, I shouldn't have said anything," Naesala muttered.

Leanne sighed and smiled sadly. "Thank you again. Today much fun," she whispered.

"Anything to make your stay here delightful, Leanne, darling," he said with a grin.

"Leanne? Is someone in there with you?"

Naesala rolled his eyes. "Yes, Reyson, it's me. Leanne and I are making passionate love."

Reyson burst through the door and gasped. "Naesala! You're not supposed to be in here! You better not be... WHY IS YOUR SHIRT OFF?!"

Naesala smirked. "I told you. We're making passionate love."

Leanne laughed. "I putting aloe on Naesala. He help me put on so I help him," she explained matter-of-factly.

Reyson stared at her in horror. "H-he was... r-rubbing... on you?"

"She asked me to," Naesala told him. "Besides, all I did was her back and face. Relax."

"Her b-back?" Reyson was speechless.

"Well, Leanne, I better get going before Reyson has a heart attack. Thanks for the backrub!"

"B-backrub?!"

Naesala smirked. "Good night, Reyson." Then he turned to Leanne. "Good night, darling." He kissed her lightly on the lips and then left the room.

"NAESALA!!" Reyson shouted. "I'm telling Father about this! You've been going too far!"

"Whatever, Reyson," Naesala called back. Then he grinned. _Yes, today was a very satisfying day!_


	5. Chapter 5: Sexy Dresses

_I'm back from multiple vacations. I don't know if snakes actually stalk people, but it would be funny if they did! And about Janaff's dream... his dream isn't a perverted dream, it's just a normal dream of a hopeless romantic. Enjoy! :D_

* * *

Chapter 5 -- Sexy Dresses, In Which Leanne is Stalked by a Snake

The only reason Naesala woke up early the next morning was because he heard a blood-curdling scream.

_Oh no... That sounded like Leanne!_ He threw on some clothes and raced down the hallway to Leanne's room. When he got there he saw that Reyson had already beaten him.

"Leanne! Leanne, what's wrong?" the heron prince asked his sister, who was crying softly.

"S-s-sc... scary!" she stammered.

Naesala walked up to her and patted her shoulder. "What was it? Don't worry, I'm here."

Leanne looked up at him with teary eyes and gulped. "Cold thing touch my leg!"

Reyson glared at Naesala.

"What? It wasn't me! I just woke up!" the raven protested.

Leanne shook her head. "Not Naesala... cold and slimy!"

Naesala glanced into her room, but no one was in there. "I'll check it out..." He looked on the floor and under the bed, but all he found were dust bunnies. Then he flipped the covers off of her bed and found it -- a small garden snake. "Aw, Leanne, it was just a snake!" Naesala held up the slithering little critter. "These ones are harmless. It probably just liked the warmth."

Leanne watched the snake in terror. "It wrap around my leg!" she squeaked.

"Don't worry, Leanne. It won't bother you anymore. I'll put it outside," he assured her. He turned and threw the snake out the window. "Strange that it got in here, though," he muttered as he rejoined the herons. "I don't think I've ever found a snake in here before. I better tell Nealuchi."

"Tell me what, Nestling?" Nealuchi walked up behind them. "Is everything all right? I thought I heard a scream."

"Everything's fine," replied Naesala. "Leanne found a snake in her bed, that's all."

"Goodness! You poor thing! It must have given you such a fright!"

Leanne nodded.

"Do you know how it might have gotten in here, Nealuchi?" Reyson asked.

The old crow thought for a moment. "I am not sure. Perhaps it came in through a window?"

Naesala shrugged. "Oh well. Next time you see a snake in here, Leanne, just call. I'll get rid of it for you."

Leanne nodded, though she was still a bit shook up.

The rest of the morning went fairly uneventfully. Leanne was a bit wary whenever she sat down, but soon she had calmed down and decided to spend the afternoon with Naesala in the garden, much to his delight. They were sitting under one of the cherry trees, glad to have been able to escape from Reyson.

"How long do you think it will take for him to find us?" Naesala asked as he gently ran a hand through her hair.

"Hopefully long time," she giggled. "He not know his way through garden yet!"

"Let's just hope it stays that way," he whispered as he kissed her cheek.

Leanne sighed. "I like garden. You really make just for me?"

"Of course, darling. I know how much you love gardens!"

She leaned her head against his shoulder. "Thank you."

"So, how do you like Kilvas so far?" he asked.

"Not like rocks!" She wrinkled her nose. "So brown! But... I like garden and ocean."

"That's good. I don't mind the rocks, really. They're good protection."

"True... but they bring... er, boring..." She smiled up at him. "Other than rocks, I like Kilvas!"

Naesala grinned. _Another point for me!_ "Would you like to stay here? You know, well... live here?"

Leanne laughed. "Not good as Serenes! But maybe... I stay here..."

_Propose, you idiot, propose! But I need a ring, dammit!_

"Naesala? What wrong?"

"Ah, nothing. Just thinking," he replied quickly.

"About what?" Her wide eyes betrayed her curiosity.

Naesala gazed up at the clear blue sky. "About... the future, I guess..."

Suddenly, Leanne screamed and jumped on Naesala, causing both of them to fall over to the ground, with Leanne lying on top of him.

_Oh, baby!_ Naesala thought. He figured that the scream was a scream of delight. However, Leanne's terrified face quickly convinced him otherwise. "What is it, Leanne?"

"S-snake!" she squeaked. "On leg!"

"Oh..." Naesala sat up and lifted her dress enough to see the garden snake wrapped around her leg. "What the hell?" Naesala hastily unwrapped the snake (which, to his delight, meant touching Leanne's wonderful legs) and held it up. "Look, snake, she's mine!" he shouted. "I'm the only one who's allowed to wrap around her leg!" Then he tossed the snake into the bushes.

Leanne sighed with relief. "Thank you. Snake so scary!"

Naesala grinned. "Anytime, darling. I'll make sure he doesn't bother you again! Now, can _I_ wrap around you leg?"

Leanne laughed.

"You really do have such lovely legs, Leanne," the raven remarked.

"Really?" Leanne pulled her dress up to her knees.

"Why don't you wear shorter dresses, Leanne? You should really show off your legs more," he continued.

She sighed and shook her head.

"Reyson," they both answered in unison.

Naesala suddenly had a new idea for the silk dresses he was planning on giving to Leanne. _Then Reyson couldn't complain 'cause they're a _gift_, so she has to wear them to be polite!_ The dresses were already finished, of course, but that didn't mean they couldn't be altered. If he could just get Nealuchi to make them a _teensy_ bit sexier, then Leanne could show off her legs whenever she wanted to! And Reyson would be unable to protest! _This is the perfect plan! Why didn't I think of this earlier?_ He grinned in satisfaction, a grin which Leanne had come to recognize as his evil plan grin.

"What you thinking of now?" she asked warily.

"You'll see," he replied. "You'll like it, too!"

Leanne giggled. "Something you get in trouble for again, I think."

Soon it was time to return to the castle for dinner. Naesala led Leanne to the dining room and then rushed off to find Nealuchi to tell him about his newest plan.

"What now, Nestling?" the old crow groaned when Naesala found him in the library. "Prince Reyson is still a bit upset at you about the whole beach incident, you know."

"So? I have a great idea!" Naesala exclaimed. "Where are the silk dresses?"

Nealuchi gulped. "In the east chamber. Why, Nestling?"

Naesala smirked in triumph. "We need to alter them to make them sexier!"

"H-how sexy?"

"Oh, just lower the bust line a little, shorten the length... What?" Naesala frowned at Nealuchi's reproachful expression.

"Nestling, Prince Reyson would never allow his sister to wear anything too revealing!" the crow answered. "I also don't trust you around scantily-clad women."

"But Nealuchi, Leanne has such lovely legs! She should show them off more!" Naesala sighed. "Don't worry; I won't make them _too_ sexy. Just some small, subtle changes, you know?"

"Prince Reyson wouldn't let her wear them!"

"No, but since they're a gift he'll feel bad if she doesn't wear them!" Naesala replied. "She'll _have_ to wear them in order to be polite! Come on, Nealuchi! Just shorten them up to her knees?"

Nealuchi thought it over for a moment. "Fine. But you have to promise to be good! You'll need to stay in Prince Reyson's favor if you plan on marrying his sister!"

Naesala waved the comment off with a quick flick of his hand. "I've been good so far! I rescued her from the stalker snake again this afternoon!" Then he grinned. "You know, we _really_ need to find a woman for Reyson. There has to be _someone_ else out there who could deal with him..."

Nealuchi chuckled. "Would you like me to search Kilvas? I know Prince Reyson does not like ravens much, but I'm sure there is at least one pure-hearted raven girl who would take his fancy."

"Please, Nealuchi, a pure-hearted raven?" Naesala rolled his eyes. "We make our living off of stealing from beorc traders. I doubt you'll find a pure-hearted raven."

"One can always try!" Nealuchi sighed. "I suppose I'll work with the dresses for now... Let's go, Nestling."

The two ravens examined the silk dresses with great care before deciding on an appropriate length.

"You said you would only show off her knees, Nestling!" Nealuchi protested as Naesala tried to push the length.

"Yeah, but can't just one of them at least show off a little bit of her thigh?"

The seamstress entered the room when she heard the shouting. "What is it, sirs? Have you decided on the changes yet?"

"Take the dark green one up a little more than the rest," Naesala blurted before Nealuchi could say anything. "The others just have to show off her knees. And could you lower the bust lines a little?"

"How much, my lord?"

Naesala thought for a moment. Visions of Leanne wearing a tight dress with a plunging neckline entered his mind. "Ten inches--"

Nealuchi slapped him on the back of the head. "It has to be tasteful, Nestling!"

"Fine..." Naesala groaned. "Nine and a half inches."

"Two inches, Nestling! That is daring enough! Any more than four inches would offend Prince Reyson highly!" the old crow warned.

The seamstress laughed, used to this kind of arguing between Naesala and Nealuchi over clothes. "My lord, nine inches would mean that I would have to add some ties into the dress, because that would open it all the way down to here..." She gestured toward the middle of her stomach.

Naesala stared at her for a long time, imagining Leanne in a dress that showed off way more skin than Reyson would ever allow even if they were married. _That would be... amazing!_

"My lord? My lord, are you drooling?"

"Ah, sorry, I zoned out for a moment." Naesala shook his head. "Better go with four inches. Actually, make the dresses vary between four and six inches. That way I can get away with some of them and still annoy Reyson with the others."

"Nestling, it's a bad idea!"

The seamstress giggled. "Is that the final decision, my lord?"

"Yes it is! Get to work, now!" Naesala grinned in triumph as the seamstress left with the dresses.

Nealuchi sighed. "Prince Reyson is not going to like this at all..."

The rest of the evening went fairly uneventfully. There were no more attacks by the snake, for Naesala had sent out some soldiers to track it down and take it to Phoenicis.

"If Tibarn asks, tell him that it's a present from me to help clean out his garden," Naesala ordered as the soldiers flew off with the poor garden snake.

"Tibarn like snakes?" Leanne asked innocently.

"I don't know. I suppose we'll find out," the raven replied with a smirk.

* * *

That night, Janaff was sleeping peacefully after a hard day of training new soldiers. It had been over a week since he had been able to get a decent night's sleep. Dreams about Leanne and Tanith and Lucia and other lovely women were floating through his mind. In this particular dream he was talking with Lucia about her beautifully long hair when she suddenly reached down and grabbed his leg.

"Why is your hand so cold, Lady Lucia?" he asked.

Lucia smiled at him and replied with a low hiss.

Then Janaff woke up and flipped off the covers. "What the hell? How did a snake get into my bed?" He was about to throw the small garden snake out the window when he had an excellent idea. "Ooh! Ulki hates snakes!"

Chaos consequently ensued in Phoenicis for the next week.


	6. Chapter 6: Eyes

_Okay, everyone! There is a poll on my profile page where you can vote for who you think I should pair up with Reyson. PLEASE VOTE! I will use whoever gets the most votes unless it's like a tie. Then I'll flip a coin or something lol. Otherwise, I can't really finish chapter 7, so I need your help! Thanks bunches! :D_

* * *

Chapter 6 -- Eyes, In Which Leanne Gets Stylish

"Leanne, darling, I have a surprise for you!" Naesala exclaimed.

The heron siblings were in the middle of a game of chess. Leanne jumped up excitedly, knocking the chessboard over onto Reyson's lap.

"Oh! I sorry!"

"It's all right, Leanne. I'll pick it up," Reyson murmured. He eyed Naesala suspiciously.

She nodded and turned to the raven. "What is surprise?"

Naesala grinned. "You'll have to follow me into the bedroom."

"NO WAY!" Reyson shot up, scattering the chess pieces even more. "I knew you wouldn't wait! Leanne, you're not going in there without--"

"Reyson, shut up." Naesala rolled his eyes. "If I was planning on doing that, I wouldn't have come out here and asked her to come along while you were sitting right there. I'm not dumb."

Reyson threw the chess pieces onto the table. "Fine. Well, I'm going with you!"

Naesala led the two herons into his room and pointed at his bed. "It's right there, Leanne!"

Reyson only saw the bed, not what was on it. "Naesala! I'm not letting my sister get into that bed!"

"It's _on_ the bed, Reyson! Honestly, I wouldn't want you along if I was planning on making love to your sister!"

Leanne ran over to the bed and squealed in delight. "Pretty dresses!"

Sure enough, five silk dresses were laid out on the bed. The seamstress had worked all night to alter them and had happily delivered them to Naesala that morning.

"Do you like them, Leanne?" Naesala asked as she picked up the dark green one and held it against her cheek.

"So smooth!" she replied. "I like very much! All my favorite colors!"

Reyson looked over the dresses and nodded. "Wow, Naesala. I never would have expected that you would go all out with..." Then he noticed that Leanne was holding the dark green one up to herself to see how it would look on her. He glanced over at the others and realized they were all similarly short.

"I try on?" Leanne asked excitedly.

"Go ahead, Leanne! They're all for you!" Naesala grinned. _She absolutely loves them. Reyson can't say no to this!_

She ran behind his changing screen to try on the dark green dress.

"Um, Naesala? Where, exactly, did you get all of these?" Reyson asked suspiciously.

"Begnion, of course!"

The heron's eyes narrowed. "From Begnion? Or from a Begnion merchant ship?"

"Details, details." Naesala casually waved his hand. "Where do you think I got _any_ of this?" he asked, gesturing to the various trinkets lying around his room.

Reyson breathed a heavy sigh. "My sister, wearing stolen merchandise... But these look a little short. Are you sure they will fit her?"

"Oh, they'll fit her alright!" the raven replied. "See? Here she comes now!"

Leanne dashed toward them with a huge grin on her face. "I like! I like so much! So pretty!"

The silk hugged her form fairly well, but not too tightly. It had three-quarter sleeves and a gold trim. The bust line was not terribly low, but it did show a little bit of cleavage. It went down to her knees but had a slit up the side, reaching a little past her mid-thigh.

_Wow..._ Naesala had to keep from staring. _She has such really nice legs! And it's not too slutty!_

Reyson gulped as she danced around in her new dress. "The slit... there's a slit... and it shows off her legs..." He continued mumbling incoherently until Naesala patted him on the back.

"Well? Do you approve?" the raven asked with a large smirk.

"D-does it have to be so short?" Reyson squeaked.

"Reyson, I like! Let me keep?" Leanne was putting on her best puppy-dog eyes now. "It so comfy against my skin!"

"Now, now! You can't say no to that look, Reyson!"

Reyson suddenly regained his senses. "Fine... you can keep it, Leanne. But don't go outside while wear--"

"I show to Nealuchi!" Leanne exclaimed as she ran out of the room.

They listened as the sound of her footsteps trailed off. Then Reyson turned to Naesala.

"You did that on purpose! You made it so that she would like it and I couldn't refuse it!" The heron prince glared at him. "That's practically lingerie!"

"It is not," Naesala casually replied. "If it was lingerie, the neckline would plunge much deeper, and I would have asked the seamstress to make it even short--"

Reyson groaned in frustration. "Just because she's wearing that kind of clothing still does not give you the excuse to mess around with her, you hear?"

"But, Reyson, she has such nice legs... You know what they say: if you've got it, flaunt it!"

"Oh, what I have I let my sister get into?" Reyson put his head into his hands. "If Father saw this..."

"Reyson, Reyson..." Naesala put an arm around his friend. "When you find a woman, you'll understand. Now then, what do you like in a woman? Legs, chest, butt--"

"None of that! I'm not a pervert like you!"

"Come now, there has to be something that makes you stare at a woman a little longer than you normally would," the raven continued. "Don't tell me you've never looked at a woman in a certain way before!"

Reyson looked at his feet and blushed. "Well... I guess I ad... admire..."

"Yes?"

"...Eyes..."

Naesala burst out laughing. "Eyes? You'll go for a woman with the captivating eyes, then? Not bad, not bad!"

"Look, Naesala, I'm not interested in finding a woman right now! I'm having enough trouble worrying about my sister!" With that, Reyson stormed out of the room.

_Eyes, hm? I'll have to tell Nealuchi. We'll find the woman with the best eyes! _Naesala grinned in satisfaction. _We'll search all of Tellius if we have to! Then he'll get off my back because he'll be so distracted with his own lovely lady. Oh, this is perfect!_

He happily strode down the hallway, sorting through all the women he had ever met before who had lovely eyes.

Leanne came bounding toward him, interrupting him from his scheming. "Naesala, thank you so much!"

"You're quite welcome," he replied, using a lot of effort to keep from staring at her legs. "Now, Leanne, do you know if your brother has ever fancied any young lady before?"

"I not know..." She sighed. "If he did he not tell me, because I tell you then."

"You would? You would tell me if your brother was attracted to someone?" Naesala's eyes lit up.

Leanne giggled. "Of course! Reyson so strict. He need a girlfriend."

"Leanne, I love you!" Naesala threw his arms around her. "We really are the perfect couple!"

"R-really?" She blushed. "P-perfect couple?"

Now it was Naesala's turn to blush. "O-of course! You know... we both like to plot against Reyson." The phrase "Propose now, you idiot!" kept playing through in his mind. "A-and other things..."

Leanne snuggled against his chest. "We are perfect couple," she whispered. Then she laughed and looked into his eyes. "Now we both sexy!" she exclaimed.

"Oh yes we are!" Naesala grinned. _I think I have been a bad influence on her... Too bad, Reyson!_

She pulled away from him so she could twirl around in her new dress some more. "Pretty pretty pretty," she sang.

_I wonder if I could possibly sneak away and grab a ring,_ he thought. _Now is such a good time... then again, should I bother trying to placate Reyson more? _

"Naesala!"

"Yes, darling?"

Leanne smiled. "We go find woman for Reyson!"

"Now?" Naesala strained to keep himself from squeaking. He was almost confident he could propose to her any minute now.

"Maybe. We find Nealuchi. He know many ladies?"

Naesala laughed. "I don't know. I've often wondered that myself!"

They wandered through the castle until they found Nealuchi, who was admiring the garden.

"Nealuchi!" Naesala called. "Leanne and I need your help!"

"Of course! Anything for the lovely lady Leanne!" the old crow replied.

Naesala frowned. "What about me?"

"So, Princess Leanne," Nealuchi continued, completely ignoring the raven, "why do you need my assistance?"

"We looking for woman for Reyson," she answered with a giggle. "He need girlfriend."

"My goodness, my lady!" Nealuchi chuckled. "You're getting just as bad as Nestling!"

"But he does need girlfriend," she remarked. "You help?"

Nealuchi nodded. "I suppose your brother should get settled down soon..."

Naesala grinned. "Any suggestions? He told me he likes girls with nice eyes."

Leanne turned to him and laughed. "He like eyes? He never tell me that!"

"I coaxed it out of him," the raven replied with a smirk.

"Well, let's see... ladies with nice eyes..." Nealuchi thought for a moment. "If I do remember correctly, Lady Tanith of Begnion has captivating eyes--"

"Oh please, Nealuchi! She's a beorc!" Naesala shook his head. "Like Reyson would break _that_ code..."

The old crow smiled. "You never know, Nestling. If General Ike's sister was older, she would have lovely eyes, too."

"Yeah, and Reyson's not going to commit statutory rape, either," Naesala muttered. "Isn't she like thirteen or something?"

"I am only giving suggestions, Nestling. Who did you have in mind?"

Leanne piped up. "A nice hawk? He like hawks as friends... He probably know hawk girl with nice eyes. We ask Janaff or Ulki?"

"I suppose that's always a possibility," the raven king noted. Though working with the hawks was not quite what he'd had in mind.

"There are also some lovely ravens right here in Kilvas," Nealuchi continued. "Remember that girl named Vika who disappeared a few years ago? Her whole family has beautiful eyes."

Naesala, of course, didn't remember that at all, though the name sounded familiar.

"Well, we have some ideas on the floor, here." Nealuchi nodded. "I'm sure we will think of others in time."

Leanne cocked her head in confusion. "I see no ideas on floor."

"It's an expression, darling," Naesala replied. "It means we have a few options to consider already. I suppose we'll just have to coax some more information out of that stubborn heron... Could you do that for me, darling?"

Leanne smiled. "Of course! I do my best!"


	7. Chapter 7: Raven Girls

_Here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for! Of course, Vika won by an overwhelming margin. I'm not very familiar with Vika so if she's a little OOC please let me know lol. Thanks to everyone who voted! :D_

* * *

Chapter 7 -- Raven Girls, In Which Reyson Reluctantly Spills the Beans

Leanne was excited. Today she was going to find out just what kind of woman her older brother would fall for. She had already planned out her questions in advance; now she just needed to find him alone and drill every single secret out of him.

"Reyson!" she called. "Reyson, I have question."

Reyson perked up and looked behind his sister. No Naesala. This was indeed unusual... "Yes, Leanne?"

She smiled sweetly. He had no idea what was coming next. "Reyson, you think I happy?"

"What do you mean?" Reyson frowned. "You look happy. How would you not know if you're happy?"

"See, I look happy. I am happy. You know why I happy?"

"I don't know, Leanne. But you have me completely confused," he replied.

"I happy because I love Naesala. I in love!" She twirled around to show just how happy she was. "See? Love make me happy."

"That's nice, Leanne," Reyson muttered. The topic of Naesala did not make him very thrilled to continue the conversation.

"Don't you want be happy?" she asked. "Don't you want love someone?"

Reyson sighed. "Naesala set you up, didn't he? When is he going to pop out and say something ridiculous like, 'I found the perfect woman for you, Reyson'?''

"Naesala not set me up!" she instantly replied. "I want you be happy! You always in bad mood. I think it because you not in love."

"I don't need to be in love to be happy, Leanne."

"What you want you wife to be like?" She smiled and blocked the doorway so he couldn't try to leave. "After all, Father say he want you to get married."

"Why do you care, Leanne?" He stood up and tried to push past her, but she spread her arms across the doorway and made a pouty face.

"You so mean, Reyson! You not tell me. I only want help!" she exclaimed. "Don't you want be happy like me?"

"Ugh... Naesala's been a bad influence on you... Fine. Sit down. I'll tell you." He walked over to his bed and plopped down in defeat. "But you can't tell Naesala!"

Leanne grinned. "I not tell!" Then she sat down next to him and looked at him expectantly.

* * *

Meanwhile, Nealuchi and Naesala were flying toward the mainland in their raven forms, scouting for potential merchant ships to raid. The wind was particularly rough today, but they were experienced enough to be able to maintain balance in the air. Suddenly, something caught Naesala's eye down below. Another crow was flying just over the forests near Begnion's shore, and it looked too big to be a real crow.

"Hey, look there," he whispered to the old crow.

"A laguz? How interesting," Nealuchi remarked. "I didn't think anyone else was scouting this area..."

"No one else was supposed to be here," Naesala replied. "I wonder if a solider is having an affair on the mainland... Let's follow it and find out!"

"Nestling! We have business to do!"

"The wind's too rough today for sailing. I doubt we'll find any ships." Naesala grinned. "I'm curious, anyway."

They followed the crow from a distance and watched it land in the forest. Naesala landed in a tree and looked into the clearing to see a young beorc boy and a tiger laguz looking at the raven. The bird transformed into a graceful laguz girl and began chattering with the other two.

"My goodness!" Nealuchi whispered. "That's Vika!"

"Vika?" Naesala thought back. The name certainly sounded familiar...

"She disappeared several years ago. Remember?" The old crow sighed. "She hasn't changed much. Her eyes are still as sharp as always."

"Her eyes..." Naesala watched the raven girl for a moment and realized that her eyes were indeed quite attractive. _Reyson likes eyes. She's a laguz. Bingo._ Then he looked at her companions and recognized them as Tormod and Muarim, who both fought with Ike in the battle against Daein.

"Didn't the beorc and the tiger fight with us in Crimea?" Nealuchi asked.

"Yes, I just realized that," Naesala replied. "So I'm sure they won't mind if we take little Vika with us to meet the eligible bachelor Reyson."

Nealuchi gasped and turned to him. "Nestling! You can't just take her back to Kilvas! She's friends with these two. She probably wants to keep traveling with them."

"Yes, but Reyson needs to get hitched really badly. Those two don't look tough. We'll just take her back now!"

"You're going to _kidnap_ her?!" Nealuchi's eyes widened in fright.

"It's not kidnapping if she's going back to her home," Naesala answered calmly. "Besides, she'll be meeting the man of her dreams."

"How do you know if she'll like Prince Reyson ba--"

"Shh, Nealuchi! We have to take her now, before they realize that we're here!" Naesala grinned and launched himself from his perch.

"Oh, this is very, very bad..." the old crow mumbled as he followed after him.

"Hey, do you hear something?" Tormod asked his friends, but he was interrupted by two large raven laguz swooping in toward Vika. Naesala grabbed Vika's arms and pulled her up off the ground while Nealuchi created a distraction.

"Hey! Let go of me!" Vika shouted. "I'm a raven, too!"

"We know," Naesala replied casually. "So you're coming with us."

"Let her go, you perverts!" Tormod shouted. He launched a fireball at Nealuchi, but the old crow dodged it with ease. Then they flew up above the trees so that even Muarim in his tiger form could not attack them. The tiger growled in irritation.

"We're just borrowing her," Naesala called down to them. "Don't worry. We'll bring her back... maybe." Then he flew off while holding on to the squirming Vika.

"Seriously, what are you doing?" Vika asked frantically. "I was in the middle of a mission! Take me back, now!"

"I'm really sorry, Miss," Nealuchi told her from behind Naesala. "This is all Nestling's idea. We won't hurt you."

"I don't care! Let me go!"

Naesala laughed. "She just doesn't give in. She's really stubborn. She's perfect!" He grinned as he carried Vika, kicking and screaming, back to Kilvas.

* * *

Leanne smiled as she listened to Reyson describe his ideal wife.

"She would love music, and she would be elegant and graceful." Reyson blushed in embarrassment. "Honestly, Leanne, this is so stupid!"

"What tribe she from?" Leanne asked. "No heron girls left for you. Is she raven? hawk? cat? Maybe beorc?"

Reyson shuddered. "See, this is why I'm not thinking about marriage! Who could I possibly marry?"

"I like raven," she continued. "Raven so handsome and smart and strong... Raven girl be good for you."

"Leanne!" Reyson stood up and huffed. "Seriously, I don't want to marry a raven! Or a hawk, or a cat, or a beorc! I don't want to marry anyone right now!"

Leanne frowned. "You no fun... I want niece and nephew, you know. Naesala have no siblings."

Reyson started at that statement. "What? Are you saying that you want to marry Nae--"

"I find you good raven girl to marry!" Leanne exclaimed. "Lots of raven girls here who look pretty!"

"I don't want to marry a raven girl..."

"Why not?" Leanne asked him in astonishment. "What wrong with raven?"

Reyson sighed. "Ravens... where do I start? They're dishonest, thieving, greedy, selfish..."

"You like ravens." Leanne smiled. "Naesala you best friend. I think you secretly like ravens. Why else you come with me here?"

"Leanne, you _know_ why I came with you. Naesala is so hard to trust when he's... well, in one of his moods..."

"Ravens very good-looking," Leanne continued. "Ravens have nice eyes. You like eyes, right?"

Reyson grimaced. "Naesala told you that, didn't he?"

"Of course not!" She giggled mischievously.

* * *

By the time Naesala and Nealuchi had returned to Kilvas, Vika had given up all hope of being returned to her friends. Instead of shouting she was sulking. However, once she recognized the coastline of Kilvas she gasped.

"You're taking me home?" she asked. "I thought you were up to no good or something..."

"Why would we do that?" Naesala laughed. "Don't you know who we are?"

"Not really. I haven't been home in a while, though you do look familiar..." She glanced back at the old crow. "Wait... Nealuchi? You're Nealuchi!"

"Yes, I am, Miss Vika!" Nealuchi smiled, however crows can smile. "I supposed I haven't changed much, have I?"

"Then that makes the extremely rude raven carrying me..." She gasped. "King?"

"Of course. Who else is this sexy?" They landed on the castle balcony, and Naesala let go of Vika so he could transform back. He ran a hand through his hair and grinned.

Vika smiled for a moment. Then it hit her. "You're up to no good. Why else would you have kidnapped me from my friends and taken me home?"

"It's not _kidnapping_, Vika. We just took you back home after you'd been gone for several years. Aren't you grateful at all?" Naesala made a face of mock dejection.

The raven girl sighed. "I guess I would be grateful if you hadn't rudely interrupted me... But then again, we're ravens. I should be used to it..."

"Well, this is part of a mission, you see. I have someone I would like you to meet." Naesala smirked and took her hand. "If you would follow me, please."

* * *

"Maybe _some_ ravens are nice-looking," Reyson finally admitted with a blush. "But their personalities--"

"They so nice and clever!" Leanne smiled. "Don't you want clever wife? She be fun to talk with. I like talk with Naesala."

"That's because Naesala... well, never mind about him. I don't like how they talk. You can't trust them."

"Naesala rescue me," Leanne whispered. "Ravens able to protect you."

"Yes, but wouldn't it defeat the purpose if my wife is the one protecting me? Shouldn't it be the other way around?"

"Reyson, you can't fight. How you protect _anyone_?"

Reyson frowned. "Fine... so ravens are pretty and strong."

"Ravens very... passionate," Leanne remarked with a dreamy look in her eyes. "Romantic. Don't you like romantic?"

"Leanne, this is getting ridiculous." Reyson started walking toward the door.

"You not answer. You must like romantic!" she replied with a giggle. "See? Raven perfect for you!"

"Naesala, what have you done to my innocent little sister?" he muttered. He was about to leave when Naesala appeared at the door with Vika.

"Ah! I was hoping I'd find you here!" Naesala exclaimed. "Vika, this is Reyson. He's part of the heron tribe, as you can see, and he's my girlfriend's brother."

There was silence as Reyson's eyes fell into Vika's.

Naesala grinned. _Look at his face! This is perfect!_

Instant. Attraction.


	8. Chapter 8: Dooble Date

_Sooo sorry for the delay... I've been sick, but now I'm slightly better so I can spend hours on the computer again. So I made this chapter even longer to make up for it. Enjoy this latest installment. :D_

* * *

Chapter 8 -- Dooble Date, In Which There is a Tea Party

Naesala was thoroughly happy that his plan was going well so far. Reyson was now completely distracted by Vika's arrival. Soon after he had seen the raven girl for the first time, he began asking questions about her, like why she had gone missing and who her family was and such. Of course, Naesala didn't really know any of the answers to these questions, so he sent the heron prince off to find Vika and ask her herself.

_That way he'll be forced to talk to her, and then maybe something will start much sooner than expected!_ Naesala thought excitedly. _And then he'll be so engrossed with Vika that he'll be perfectly fine with the idea of me marrying his sister!_

The next day, Naesala was pleasantly surprised to find Vika and Reyson sitting across from each other and chatting before breakfast.

"Ah, how are you two this fine morning?" he asked as he walked into the room. "May I ask what you're discussing so excitedly about?"

"We were talking about our pasts," Vika replied.

"Yes. We've both had the misfortune of being in captivity," Reyson added, narrowing his eyes at the raven king.

_Oh not _that_ again,_ Naesala thought. "Well, I guess that's... good. You have something in common!"

"I guess so..." Vika stared down at her breakfast and began playing with her food.

Leanne then burst into the room and was delighted to find that her brother was already somewhat distracted by Vika. "Naesala, I ask you question? Outside?"

Reyson's attention toward Vika snapped as he saw Leanne leave with Naesala. "Wh-where are you going?"

"Just out of the room, Reyson. She wants to ask a question. Calm down," Naesala muttered. _Hm, I guess we'll need to work a little harder to get him completely engrossed with her..._

Once they were out of the room and out of Reyson's earshot, Leanne looked up at Naesala and asked him, "We go on date?"

"On a date?" Naesala grinned. "What kind of date, darling?"

"Ah... a dooble date!"

Naesala cocked an eyebrow. "'Dooble'? Do you mean a double date?"

She nodded eagerly. "With Reyson and Vika! We go on date and then it put them in mood!"

"Ooh, Leanne! You're even cleverer than I thought!" He kissed her forehead. "That's a great idea!" _And Reyson couldn't refuse it because if he didn't go with us then he'd worry that Leanne and I would do something bad! It's perfect!_

"I thought you like!" Leanne replied with a smile.

"Leanne, we really are perfect for each other," Naesala whispered. "We're so great at plotting against Reyson!"

They happily reentered the room and presented their idea to Reyson and Vika.

"Leanne asked if the four of us could all go out somewhere," Naesala announced.

"Where is 'somewhere'?" Reyson asked suspiciously. "Not the beach again, I hope!"

Leanne giggled. "Where you want. Maybe garden? Or we have tea party?"

"That sounds fun," Vika remarked.

Reyson's suspicious expression instantly changed to one of interest. "I wouldn't mind a tea party, actually."

_He's just agreeing because Vika wants to do it, right?_ Naesala held back a fit of laughter at this thought. "All right, where will said tea party take place? Up on the balcony?"

Reyson glanced over at Vika. "Where do you want to have it, Vika?"

"Doesn't matter to me. The balcony's fine."

Leanne smiled at the raven girl. "This way we get know Vika more! I hope we good friends soon!"

Vika nodded, and Reyson seemed a bit enthusiastic himself.

"Nealuchi!" Naesala called. "Go get some tea ready! We're going to have a tea party on the balcony!"

The old crow (who always seemed to appear out of nowhere these days) popped out and chuckled. "I will arrange for the finest tea set to be used!"

Naesala was all excited about his, or in this case Leanne's, ingenious plan. Until he suddenly realized the downfall to the whole tea party scheme.

_No alcohol. Where's the fun if there's no alcohol? I don't even like tea that much!_

He began to wonder if he could sneak in some wine, but then he remembered how Reyson had reacted to the last incident involving alcohol and thought better of it. Instead, he figured he would just have to endure the non-alcoholic party in order to help his poor friend get with a woman.

Nealuchi had indeed set out the finest tea set for the double date. Each cup was intricately carved with roses and a lacey pattern, and the tablecloth was also of a fine, elegant white lace.

Naesala looked over all of this with amazement. _Why the hell did we have all this stuff to begin with? I've never had a tea party in my life before!_

"Nealuchi did a good job with this," Reyson remarked next to him after they had sat down. "He really deserves a day off, don't you think?"

"That's funny, Reyson." Naesala glanced up and saw the girls walk out onto the balcony. _Whoa. Leanne must have gotten to Vika..._

Leanne was wearing the lilac dress he had given her, and her hair was tied up in a loose half-ponytail. However, the usually tomboyish Vika was wearing a fancy dress of apple-red, and her hair was also tied up. It was obvious that Leanne had decided to dress the raven girl up in order to make her more attractive to Reyson.

Leanne squealed with delight when she saw the tea set. "It so pretty! You not tell me you have tea set like this, Naesala! We have tea party more often!"

"Only the best here at Kilvas!" the raven king replied. _Oh please, not too many tea parties... I'd much rather prefer wine..._

Reyson's face darkened slightly as Vika sat down next to him (at Leanne's urging). "Y-you look very nice, Miss Vika."

"Th-thanks... Your sister dressed me up." She shyly stared down at her tea cup, probably wishing that she could be wearing something less fancy.

"Vika very pretty," Leanne pointed out. "I almost jealous of her eyes. She has pretty eyes, you think?" She locked her eyes with Reyson's in order to force an answer out of him.

"Y-yes, she does have pretty eyes... Ah, let's pour the tea, shall we?"

Naesala attempted to look polite by sipping the tea slowly, but he hated it so much that after about two sips he just gave up and let it sit in his cup. He leaned over to Leanne and whispered, "You don't have to be jealous of Vika's eyes. I like your eyes, darling."

The heron princess giggled. "You so sweet, Naesala!" Then she pecked him on the cheek.

_Maybe Leanne and I should kiss a little more in front of them. Then Reyson will get into the mood and think about what it would be like to kiss Vika!_ Naesala grinned at his clever little plot and kissed Leanne back on her forehead. "We're getting them into the mood," he whispered lowly so that the others couldn't hear.

Reyson cleared his throat in embarrassment. "W-well, Vika, I remember you saying something about being part of a group that rescues enslaved laguz."

"Y-yes, that's right. The Laguz Emancipation Army."

Naesala laid his hand on top of Leanne's, letting their fingers interlock. He glanced over at Reyson and Vika to see if they had noticed.

"I see... Isn't that great, Leanne?" Reyson turned to his sister but then cringed when he saw his sister holding hands with Naesala.

"Very nice," she replied. "You strong and brave, Vika!"

"Oh, well... it's not easy... Usually I have to get my friends to help me," she replied with a laugh. "But I remember what it was like to be in captivity, so I want to help my kin out as much as I can."

"Reyson help out in battle before, too. He help Crimea in war with Daein," Leanne explained.

"Really? Herons can fight?" Vika asked in curiosity.

Reyson shook his head. "I didn't fight. I used my galdrar to refresh the tired soldiers. They all seemed grateful for it, too."

"Battle against Daein is rough, though," Naesala added. _Good job, Leanne! We have to promote Reyson's good qualities to Vika as much as possible!_

Vika smiled. "So I guess we all know what it's like to fight for our fellow laguz. It's dangerous, but it's worth it!"

"I not know," Leanne replied. "I never fight. They not let me." She pointed to Naesala and Reyson.

Naesala put his arms around her. "If you ever did go into battle, though, I'd protect you."

"A-anyway," Reyson blurted, "ah... Would you like some of these cookies, Vika? They're quite delicious."

"S-sure..." Vika was also becoming slightly uncomfortable by Naesala and Leanne's physical contact.

_Damn, this isn't working like I'd hoped... Maybe we should lay off on the touching__, _Naesala thought. "Miss Vika, I know it seems like we're asking a lot of questions, but I have another one for you."

The raven girl laughed. "It's fine. I've been gone for so long... I was kind of expecting to be asked a lot of questions."

Naesala grinned. "Do you like music?"

"Uh, sure. Why?"

"Just wondering..." He glanced over at Reyson, who had perked up slightly at her response.

"I like sing!" Leanne exclaimed. "You like?"

"Oh, I don't really sing that well..."

"Nonsense. You probably sing much better than you think," Reyson reassured her.

Naesala stifled a fit of laughter. _He's trying to woo her! This is great!_

Leanne jumped up in excitement. "We sing! We all sing together! I think it fun!"

Reyson sighed. "Leanne, I don't know if Vika would want--"

"No, that's fine." Vika smiled at him. "I've heard about the musical talents of the heron tribe, but I've never heard them for myself! Ah, if you don't mind, of course."

"I not mind. You, Reyson?" Leanne gave her brother the irresistible puppy-dog face.

"All right..."

Then she turned to Naesala. "You sing, too?"

_Dammit, this is too perfect! Vika will have to sing, and Reyson will reassure her, and then Vika will fall in love with his voice! It's all perfect, but... I've never sung in front of people before in my life!_ Naesala faked a confident smirk. "Of course, darling."

"You sing, Naesala?" Reyson seemed surprised at this.

"Reyson, _of course_ I sing. I'm _me_." He wasn't really sure what that was supposed to mean, but it sounded cool so he just left it at that.

"When we have singing, then?" Leanne asked.

"How about tomorrow?" Naesala suggested. _That way I can get Leanne to help me with my singing before I have to perform._

The others agreed. The rest of the tea party went fairly well, and Naesala could tell that Reyson and Vika were already becoming good friends. Now he just had to get them to become more than that.

After the date was over, Naesala quickly pulled Leanne aside to ask her for help.

"You not sing before?" she asked curiously. "How that possible?"

"I've sung before, to myself," he replied. "But I've never sung in front of people before. You know, us ravens aren't exactly songbirds."

She giggled. "I teach you. After all, you teach me to dance! It only fair!"

She led him to the library, since Reyson rarely ever went in there. Naesala figured that this was best, since the heron prince would probably assume the worst if he found them alone in one of their bedrooms.

"Okay, you sing for me," she told him. "I tell you what you need work on."

"What do you want me to sing? Anything?"

"What you want."

Naesala cleared his throat and sung a little ditty about a helpless beorc merchant ship. When he finished he noticed that Leanne had covered her mouth with her hand, and her face was bright red.

"Was it really that dashing?" he asked with a grin.

Then she burst out laughing. "It so... bad! You voice so bad!"

"What?! What was bad about it?"

She waited until she had caught her breath. "You mostly on pitch, but you voice crack so much and so scratchy... You stick with speaking. You speaking voice much better."

He sighed. "This won't go well, then. Maybe I'll just lie and say that I've come down with a little cold." Then he grinned. "Of course, Vika's voice won't be much better. Ravens can't sing."

"You sing first to help Vika's confidence," Leanne suggested. She started to leave the room.

"Wait a minute, aren't you going to help me?"

She turned to him and smiled. "Maybe other time. For now, you beyond help."

He walked over to her. "What if I kissed you?"

"Kiss not sing. You much better at kiss than sing."

He pulled her face closer to his. "Are you sure?" Then he kissed her lightly on the lips.

"Okay. You win." She giggled. "I help you after dinner. But it not be easy!"


	9. Chapter 9: Under the Apple Grove

_I'm going to be extremely busy over the next few weeks, so if updates are slow, that's why. So sorry... I'd rather be writing than working on all the stuff I have to do lol.  
Now things are really going to heat up! Enjoy this lovely chapter. I enjoyed writing it. :D_

* * *

Chapter 9 -- Under the Apple Grove, In Which There is Hand-Holding

On the day appointed for the karaoke party, Naesala found himself beginning to second-guess his little plan. Leanne was attempting to help his singing voice become much smoother and more in pitch, but so far she was having little success.

"Listen me. Hear how my voice so smooth," she instructed. She sang an arpeggio on "la" and gestured for him to do the same.

"La, la, la, la-- ack." Naesala groaned. "The day you find a raven who can actually sing, let me know, because I don't think that such a thing exists."

Leanne giggled. "No give up! You can do it!"

"Leanne, why don't you sing a song for me?" he asked with a grin. "Then maybe I can learn a few... pointers."

She frowned. "You just want hear me sing."

"What's wrong with that? You have such a lovely voice!"

She smiled at the compliment and began singing a gentle song in the old tongue. Naesala was completely engrossed in her beautiful voice. He almost forgot where he was when she finished.

"Now, what you learn from that?" she asked, waking him up from his reverie.

He reached over and started playing with her golden hair. "I learned that I need to get you to sing for me more often. That was absolutely beautiful."

"Oh, Naesala..." She shook her head. "You want learn sing or not?"

"Right, right."

They continued practicing until Naesala was finally able to get through an arpeggio without his voice cracking. Of course, his tone was still pretty harsh, and Leanne had a hard time keeping a straight face every time he sang.

"I think that's good enough for now," Naesala finally remarked after about another hour. "I'm gonna need my voice for later on."

They decided to take a walk through the garden, since Reyson was nowhere to be found. Naesala was hoping that the heron prince was out somewhere with Vika. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even notice that Leanne was leading them down a different path than usual. He realized it only when she gasped excitedly.

"What that?" she asked, pointing at a small stone hut that lay before them.

Naesala cringed. _Oh crap! That's the other part of the surprise! It's still not finished yet! She wasn't supposed to see it until-- _

"I go in?" She looked up at him with wide, emerald eyes.

"Not yet, darling. It's not finished yet," he replied. "Let's go back to--"

"What it for, then?" She tugged on his arm, trying to force him to take her to the cottage. "Person live there?"

"Ah, maybe... You'll have to wait and find out!" He started pulling her away. _She wasn't supposed to see it until everything got settled! This is bad!_

She frowned. "Please? Tell me!"

"I, uh... I'll have to do something first, darling. You'll have to wait, unfortunately." The raven sighed. "We should head back. The karaoke party's going to start soon!" She finally gave in and followed him back.

Reyson and Vika were waiting under the apple tree grove. Vika looked incredibly nervous; her knees were shaking and her face was almost a pale shade of green.

"Ready sing?" Leanne clapped excitedly and ran into the center of the grove. "Who sing first?"

_Perhaps I should sing first? Get the worst part over with?_ Naesala grinned and was about to volunteer when he heard Vika meekly speak up.

"I-I'll go first, I guess," she mumbled. "If no one minds..."

"Of course not!" Reyson blurted. Then he blushed slightly, hoping no one had seen it, but of course Naesala saw.

_All going perfectly according to plan!_

Vika stood up and cleared her throat. Then she took several deep breaths before she started singing.

Naesala's confident grin slowly melted into a gaping mouth of disbelief. _She's actually pretty decent! How is that possible? She's a raven like me! Raven's have awful singing voices! This isn't fair!_ Then he remembered to check Reyson for his response. The heron prince was nodding in approval, though he wasn't as entranced as Naesala was hoping he would be.

When Vika finished they all applauded. Leanne jumped up and grabbed her arms.

"That so good!" she exclaimed. "Vika have pretty voice! No need be shy!"

The raven girl blushed again. "Well, I've never really sung before... I mean, ravens aren't exactly known for their singing talent..."

_So I'm not the only one. That's somewhat reassuring. Nealuchi needs to come out here and sing, too, in order to make me look less bad._ Naesala sighed and joined them under the apple tree. "I'll sing next, I guess."

Leanne giggled. "Actually, I want sing now." She winked at him.

_She must be saving me from the embarrassment... I love you, Leanne!_ He smiled. "All right, then. You can sing."

Of course, Leanne's voice was far better than Vika's. Once again Naesala found himself completely entranced by her, so he wasn't sure what Vika and Reyson were doing the whole time.

_How come Vika's singing didn't affect Reyson? Maybe it will work the other way around. Maybe Vika will fall in love with Reyson's voice. That could work..._

Next it was Reyson's turn. Leanne rejoined Naesala and sat down on his lap, though a quick glare from the heron prince forced her to move to the grass next to Naesala.

"Maybe next time, darling," Naesala whispered. "By the way, that was absolutely beautiful." He pecked her on the ear.

"Thank you. You glad I make you not sing?"

"Yes, actually. How is Vika so good of a singer for a raven?" he asked softly.

Leanne wrinkled her nose. "She okay. Off pitch a little. But better than you."

"Well, I don't know anything about pitch," he replied. He let his fingers become entwined in hers.

"Watch Vika," she whispered. "Maybe she like Reyson's voice. Reyson has good voice."

Sure enough, as Reyson sang an old heron tribe tune, Vika's facial expression changed significantly. Her eyes were almost twinkling, and her face was bright red. Naesala never saw her take her eyes off of him.

"Success?" Leanne asked after Reyson had finished.

"I think so." Then Naesala had the perfect idea. "May I make a suggestion?" he asked the other two.

"Yes?" Reyson's eyes narrowed a little.

"How about you and Vika do a duet?" Naesala grinned. "Duets can be fun!"

"But we haven't heard you sing ye--"

"I like Naesala's idea!" Leanne exclaimed. "Vika and Reyson sing duet!"

Vika gulped. "I don't think I could possibly compare to Reyson... What about Leanne instead of me?"

"But I want see you two sing!" Leanne protested. "Please? Just one?"

Reyson took a deep breath. "I don't mind. What about you, Vika?"

"Fine..." She reluctantly joined him under the tree.

Of course, the only duet they could think of just happened to be a love song. Naesala watched with anticipation as they began singing. Vika's voice slowly became less wavering, and she moved closer to Reyson.

"She more in pitch now," Leanne whispered. "I think it help her hearing Reyson."

Reyson was singing normally until he happened to look into Vika's eyes. Then he suddenly seemed to dive into the song with renewed force. Their eyes had locked now, and their hands had met and were beginning to wrap around each other.

_Oh, this is so perfect!_ Naesala thought. _I don't even think they remember that we're here anymore!_ He decided to test this theory by kissing Leanne's hair. Reyson gave no response.

"Leanne, can I try something?" he whispered. "I want to see how effective this is."

"Okay."

He let his hands slide down her waist. Then he slowly grazed her thigh, which caused her to shudder. He kissed her neck.

Reyson still gave no response.

_This is EXCELLENT! This will completely get rid of Reyson! Now he's out of our way!_

"I think he in love with her now," Leanne whispered with a soft giggle. Then she tugged on his shirt and pointed at Reyson and Vika. "Look!"

The two were so engrossed in each other now that they were leaning in toward each other. Reyson had such a gentle, loving look in his eyes, one that Naesala had never seen before. Vika's eyes were now beginning to close.

_Oh my gosh, KISS! Kiss kiss kiss! That would be the best thing that's happened all day!_ Naesala sat up straight, watching closely.

Unfortunately, the song ended right there. Vika and Reyson froze for a moment, realizing what was just about to take place. Then they both gasped, turned a deep shade of scarlet, and instantly backed away from each other.

"Oh come on!" Naesala shouted. "It was so close!"

"Almost there," Leanne remarked sadly. "Would have be nice..."

Reyson began stuttering incoherently until he finally managed to get his thoughts together. "I'm so s-sorry, Vika! I guess I got a l-little into the song and I d-didn't mean to seem so improper and... Naesala, stop laughing!"

Naesala's guts were hurting from laughing so hard. _He's APOLOGIZING?! He almost had his first kiss and now he's apologizing for it? Oh, Reyson, we have SO much work to do!_

Leanne, too, was giggling in sheer delight. She calmed herself down and ran over to console Vika, who had covered her face in embarrassment.

Naesala finally walked over to Reyson and patted him on the back. "Well well, Reyson! I didn't realize you could get so romantic!"

"Sh-shut up!" Reyson stared down at his feet. "I don't know what came over me... I just had this urge or something."

"Um, it's called falling in love," Naesala replied bluntly. "I would say that you're growing quite partial to Miss Vika."

"I am not!" Though the lingering redness of Reyson's face convinced Naesala otherwise.

"Look, Reyson, it's okay. It's normal to want to kiss the girl you like," Naesala noted. "And in a romantic setting such as this, it's hard _not_ to want to kiss the girl you like. In fact, I might go over to Leanne right now and--"

"I was just caught up in the moment. I don't feel the way about Vika that you feel about my sister."

Naesala smirked. "Oh, really? Then just how _do_ you feel about her, hm?"

"Well, I don't want to... m-make love to her," Reyson answered quietly, uncomfortable with the very idea of it.

"They way you held her hand, though..."

Reyson groaned and stormed off.

_As I thought._ Naesala laughed to himself and looked over at Vika, who had now calmed down and was having a serious discussion with Leanne. _I'll leave them to their little girl chat._ He began to walk off when he remembered the cottage.

_Crap! I've been so preoccupied with getting Reyson together with Vika... I've forgotten the most important thing! I've gotta find a way to propose to Leanne! Especially now that she's seen the honeymoon hut..._


	10. Chapter 10: Rings

_Tensions are building! Now there's the whole issue of the engagement process. Enjoy!  
(and sorry for the delay once again. I've been sick, once again...)_

* * *

Chapter 10 -- Rings, In Which an Invasion is Imminent

_It is only a matter of time... Just a little longer,_ Naesala kept reminding himself. But he was running out of time. Leanne's visit would be over in four days, meaning he had four days to make Reyson infatuated with Vika, which would distract him away from Leanne so that he would be free to propose to her any way he wished.

Any way he wished... This left another problem:

_How am I going to propose to her_?Naesala anxiously paced back and forth in his room. _It has to be romantic, of course. She really seemed to like the beach. Maybe I'll take her to the beach. And I need a ring!_ Yet another problem. What kind of ring would Leanne like? _Green, of course... But she might not go for something that's overdone. Would she like gold? What if it had emeralds and diamonds and was made of gold?_ He groaned at the headache that was now growing in his brain. _Let's just take this one step at a time..._

He snuck out of his room and made his way to the treasure store. _Reyson would never have to know that it was stolen..._ Then he fished through mounds of pearls and rubies and golden statues and crystal ware until he found a box of rings. However, when he opened it he realized with horror that none of them bore emeralds.

_I suppose I could ask Nealu-- no bad idea. He'll tell Reyson that I'm planning on proposing to Leanne, and then it would all be over..._ He dug through more treasures, slowly making his way to the back of the room. _Come on, there has to be _something_! Don't tell me I actually have to spend money on this!_

"Nestling? Are you in here?"

"Crap!" he whispered. "Yes, Nealuchi. What do you want?"

The old crow tottered through the messy room. "What are you doing in here?" he asked. "If you need something, you could just ask--" Then he gasped. "You're looking for a ring!"

"No I'm not!" Naesala hoped that his blush wouldn't give him away.

Nealuchi chuckled. "Come now, Nestling. I know you've been waiting for this opportunity since Princess Leanne arrived here."

"This has nothing to do with that! I'm looking for a... a tea set."

"How come, Nestling?"

"Because I can. Why don't you go over there and help me look?" Naesala muttered.

"I'm afraid I don't have time," the old crow replied. "One of our scouts returned from the mainland and reported that Miss Vika's companions are on their way here to retrieve her."

"What?! They can't do that! Reyson hasn't confessed his love for her yet!" Naesala sighed. "Nealuchi, go get Vika. Convince her that she needs to stay."

"Don't you need help looking for a ring?"

"I'm not looking for a ring! In face I'm going back to my room!" He started following Nealuchi out when something green grabbed his eye. He picked it up and thrust it in his pocket without looking at it.

He rushed through the hallway until he spotted Reyson wandering around. He grabbed the unsuspecting heron prince by the shoulders for attention.

"Reyson! We have a big problem!" Naesala shouted.

Reyson's eyes widened. "Oh no. Did something happen to my father?"

"Uh... no, actually. It has nothing to do with that." Naesala cleared his throat. "Vika's companions are coming here to retrieve her! She won't be here anymore unless we act now!" He was hoping to play off of Reyson's sympathies in order to get Vika to stay.

However, Reyson merely sighed. "Well, maybe she wants to be with her friends again. You did rudely kidnap her away from them to begin with."

"B-but, what about you? You two are becoming such close... friends! Won't you miss her at all?"

Reyson shrugged. "I can always go and visit her. Or write letters or something."

Naesala's eyes lit up in excitement. "You'll go visit Vika? Soon? Perhaps in a few days?"

Reyson was about to reply when he suddenly realized where the raven was going with this. "No. I am not leaving you alone with my sister! That's a terrible idea! I'll just write a letter to her after she leaves."

"Aww, you poor thing. You will miss her so much! You know, last night it almost looked as though you wanted to ki--"

"Naesala, shut up! That was just... well, I think I got a little too much into the mood of the song. Nothing more than that!" Reyson's face was now beet-red.

Naesala was beginning to run out of ideas. _There has to be _something_ I can do to convince him!_ Then he remembered the little red-haired mage who had accompanied Vika. "You know, Reyson, if you visit Vika, just be careful of her little beorc friend... I believe his name is Tormod? He is a bit, er, overprotective of her, if you know what I mean. He might get jealous if a handsome male laguz is visiting his beloved Vika."

Reyson gulped. "You mean he has f-feelings for Vika?"

Naesala nodded. "It was apparent from the moment I saw them together. He was watching her with such a gentle, protective look, and when I came in to take her away he violently tried to attack me. His fiery passion for her is probably as strong as his fire magic, if you know what I mean."

"W-well, intimate relationships between laguz and beorc are forbidden! Vika would never allow such a thing!" Reyson replied in a shaky voice.

"That's never stopped it from happening before, though. How do you think Branded come about?"

Reyson gasped. "Th-this is terrible! What if Vika really does like... I have to find out!" With that, he rushed off to find the poor raven girl.

Naesala chuckled with delight. _This is going quite well now! Of course, the little mage is too young for a beorc to be thinking of such naughty things, but Reyson doesn't know that. Now that that's taken care of..._

"Naesala! I have question!" Leanne ran up behind him, wearing her new sage-colored dress. This was one of the dresses that had been altered greatly; it showed a fair bit of cleavage, though not enough that Reyson could protest. Naesala had to snap himself awake from the sight of her partially exposed chest in order to listen to her question.

"Yes, darling? What is it?"

She smiled innocently. "About house in garden that I see yesterday..."

"No. I'm not telling you what that is. It's a surprise, remember!" He folded his arms to show that he was not giving any more away this time.

Her face dropped a little at this, but she had another idea in mind. "I know. But I wondering if maybe it has cherry trees surround it? Cherry trees my favorite!"

Naesala hesitated to respond. _If I put cherry trees there, then she'll want to spend more time there. But it's supposed to be a surprise for when we have our honeymoon, which of course will just be the most romantic event ever! Then again, she really does love cherry trees..._

"Naesala, you taking long time to answer. I think I know what house is for!" she exclaimed with a playful grin.

"No you don't. I just had to think about how I'd obtain the cherry trees. They don't grow here naturally." Naesala sighed quietly in relief that he was able to think of an excuse so quickly. "Anyway, yes, I'll put some cherry trees around it, just for you!"

She clapped her hands in delight. "I knew! House is for me!"

"Wh-what are you talking about, darling?"

"House is where we go hide from Reyson for days! He not find us there! That what it is, right?" she asked hopefully.

_Well, she's somewhat right... but not really._ Naesala laughed. "You might be close. But I'm still not telling you!"

"Aww... Naesala, why you being mean?"

"Because it's a _surprise_, darling. You won't have to wait much longer, though." He kissed her to cheer her up. "Now, I must be on my way. There's a small issue concerning Vika's friends. They're coming here to take her back with them."

Leanne gasped. "Oh no! Reyson not love her all the way yet!"

"I know. I'm working on it, but I think we still have a long way to go. How about Vika?"

Leanne giggled. "She talk well of Reyson. She starting act like me when I first like you."

"Really?" He slid an arm around her waist. "And just how did you act when you first liked me?"

"I giggle a lot when I talk about you," she replied. "I say, 'Oh, he so nice!' and 'He so polite and good-looking!' Vika starting talk same way."

"She thinks Reyson is good-looking?" Naesala found this hard to believe. _Reyson has such a... feminine appearance. Many people tend to mistake him for a girl until he starts talking. He has such soft features and long girly hair... I suppose Vika goes for that kind of thing._

"She think he has kind face. She never mention sexy, though." Leanne wrapped her arms around him. "_You_ very sexy. I think that from the start."

"Of course you would. Not many laguz are as sexy as me!" They exchanged a few more kisses until...

"Naesala! Not in the hallway! Can't you keep your mouth off of my sister for more than two seconds?" Reyson had returned and was glaring at the raven king with disgust.

"I suppose I _could_ keep my mouth off of her, but why would I want to?" Naesala smirked and kissed Leanne on the cheek.

Reyson rolled his eyes and groaned. He had long ago given up on keeping the raven from kissing his sister at all. "Well, Leanne, could you excuse us for a second?"

The heron princess nodded and dashed off to find Vika. She was in a mood to play dress-up, anyway.

"Naesala, I'm utterly confused," Reyson whispered once he was sure that they were alone, "and although I'm worried that your advice will be completely disgusting, I don't believe I have anyone else to turn to..."

Naesala grinned. "What is it, my dear, dear Reyson?"

Reyson took a deep breathe. "Vika's been acting differently around me today. And there's a big problem with this."

"Is she being rude or something?"

"No, just the opposite." Reyson glanced around before replying, "She's acting like Leanne did when she started to like you."

_Yes! Then Vika must be starting to like Reyson! This is perfect!_ Naesala laughed. "But, Reyson, why is there a problem with that? She must like you. What's wrong with that?"

"I'm, well... I'm getting these impulses to do some very improper things, and I don't know what it's from--"

"Oh, please, Reyson! It's natural!" Naesala shook his head. "How can you be so naive? You're in love with her! That's what you're feeling! The fact that she likely loves you back is making you want to express you affections for her, and in what better ways than to become more physical?"

"But th-that's improper! What would Father say if he knew that I was holding hands with a raven girl?"

"He'd probably laugh." Naesala put an arm around Reyson in a friendly manner. "Look, Reyson, I think it's high time that you go and kiss her."

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Reyson's face was now a deep shade of scarlet, a combination of embarrassment and acknowledgment of the fact that Naesala was partially right. "I knew I should have never asked your advice! I'm surprised you haven't suggested that I take her clothes off!"

"Can't hurt," the raven replied with a shrug.

Reyson only groaned and stormed off.

_Well, I'll have to worry about that later. I must go find Nealuchi and devise a plan for holding off the invaders, should they attempt to climb Kilvas' rocky shores._ Naesala wandered off and found the old crow back in the storage room.

"I think this ring would be just lovely, don't you think?" Nealuchi suggested as he held up a large diamond ring.

"Not now, Nealuchi. We have to find a way to keep the mage and his tiger friend from retrieving Vika." Naesala didn't like the ring, anyway. "You suppose we should keep up a watch along the shoreline?"

"The tiger was quite powerful. I think a violent defensive maneuver will only result in bad feelings between the beast tribe and ours," Nealuchi responded.

"They aren't really great to begin with," Naesala muttered.

The old crow sighed. "I think we should let them come and then reason with them. After all, if Miss Vika wishes to stay, I'm sure they wouldn't mind letting her. Especially since she's attracted to such a nice young heron fellow."

"You think talking will work?"

"I think so. As long as Miss Vika's attraction continues to grow, I believe we will have no problems." He smiled in reassurance.

"Well, I hope you're right." Naesala stretched. "I'm relying on that for my other plans at the moment."

"Plans for marriage?"

"None of your business, Nealuchi."

That night, Naesala sat down on his bed with a huff, and something in his pocket jabbed into his side.

"Oh, right... What did I even pick up back in the storage room this morning? I just saw green..." He pulled the ring out of his pocket and slowly looked it over. It was made of white gold and had a thin band. The sparkling emerald in the middle was the only jewel on it, but the band was engraved with a leaf pattern. Naesala grinned. Something about it was making it scream "Leanne!" Maybe it was just its simple yet elegant beauty.

"This is perfect," he whispered.


	11. Chapter 11: Timing

_Wow, it's been forever! I'm hoping that the long wait I've put you all through was worth it, though. Because in this chapter Reyson and Vika finally..._

* * *

Chapter 11 -- Timing, In Which Reyson and Vika Finally...

The next morning Naesala woke up somewhat early so he could plan out how he was going to propose to Leanne. Several times he was tempted to ask Nealuchi for advice, but then he realized that asking Nealuchi would give away his plans. So he sat on his balcony, absentmindedly playing with his ponytail as he tried to think of the best way to propose.

"I could take her down by the beach to that secret alcove we discovered. The only problem is that I'd have to get away from Reyson and Nealuchi long enough for that to happen. Vika can only distract Reyson for so long, unless..." He remembered how preoccupied Reyson had been when he was singing with Vika under the trees. "Of course. They need to be alone and distracted with each other. They need to kiss!"

Easier said than done. Reyson still stubbornly refused to have any sort of physical intimacy with Vika. Even holding hands was a bit of a stretch for him. However, Naesala knew that if Reyson was put in the right mood he would eventually end up kissing Vika, causing the two to confess their love for each other. This process would, in theory, take long enough for Naesala to grab Leanne off to the secluded beach and propose to her. He grinned at the sheer brilliance of his plan and decided to go find Reyson and help get him into the mood.

Naesala found the poor heron in his room attempting to preen his wings in privacy. Reyson rolled his eyes when he spotted the nosy raven king walking into the room and stubbornly remained in his heron form.

"Go away, Naesala. I'm trying to have some privacy."

"Come on, Reyson, it's just_ me_! Now, I think we need to talk..."

Reyson glared. "Can't you at least wait until I'm finished? We have all day to talk. Nothing really seems to go on around here, anyway."

_Oh, plenty goes on around here! I need to propose to your sister before I lose my mind!_ Naesala sighed. "Well, since you're currently occupied, perhaps I shall go find your darling sister and spend some quality alone time with--"

Reyson instantly transformed back. "You will not! My goodness, must I _constantly_ have to baby-sit you two?"

"You don't _have_ to," Naesala replied with a smirk. Then he realized why Reyson did not originally want to transform back: he was still topless. "My, Reyson, I don't ever think I've seen you reveal this much skin! Are you becoming loose?"

"I was trying to preen! At least I do not constantly show off my chest no matter what outfit I am wearing!" Reyson shouted, pointing at Naesala's typically-unbuttoned jacket.

"Now now, Reyson, you know what they say. If you've got it, flaunt it. I have an absolutely sexy chest, and if you asked Leanne she would definitely agree."

The heron prince groaned and walked over to Naesala in defeat. "Fine. What is it that you must discuss with me?"

"Vika."

Reyson turned and was about to attempt escaping out of the window, but Naesala quickly caught his arm and yanked him back inside.

"Not so fast, dear Reyson! I believe that you are being too tame with the poor raven. Come, you must learn from the master." Naesala began pulling him along.

Reyson quickly grabbed a shirt from his bed and managed to put it on as Naesala dragged him into the hallway. "What are you talking about? I'm not going to do anything improper like _you_ would do!"

Naesala sighed. Then the perfect excuse hit him. _Of course. Why didn't I think of that earlier?_ He grinned and explained to Reyson, "I believe that there is a difference in how our respective tribes handle such matters as love."

"I never would have figured that one out," Reyson muttered. "I think it is just you, Naesala. You cannot be content unless you practically having... _relations_ with my sister!"

"Reyson, please listen." Naesala gestured out of a nearby window, where a few raven soldiers were soaring overhead on scouting duty. "You see, we ravens are much more expressive about our feelings than you herons are. If Leanne was a raven, she would be expecting me to act the way I do. Ravens are just much more physical than you herons. Honestly, did your parents ever even kiss?"

"Not in front of us!" Reyson shuddered at the thought. "And how am I supposed to believe that _all_ ravens are just as physical as you are?"

Naesala glanced around the view outside and was fortunate enough to spot a young raven couple sitting on the rocky cliffs. "Look over there, Reyson. You see?"

Reyson's eyes widened in shock. The two ravens were making out with such a passion that the poor heron had never witnessed before in his entire life. "Th-this is... _normal_ for ravens?"

"Of course!" Naesala led him away from the window and continued pulling him down the hallway. "Now you see? I am much tamer with Leanne than I would like to be."

Reyson grimaced slightly. "You are not tame at all. Oh, what have I let my sister get into?"

"Reyson, I am explaining this to you because I think you need to be more physical with Vika so that she realizes your undying love for her," the raven king casually explained. "She is expecting you to be more like a raven because that is all she probably knows about love."

"I do not have an undying love for Vika!" Reyson protested, though his red face seemed to proclaim otherwise. "I have only known her for a few days!"

"You like her. Admit it."

"She's... nice." He shook his head. "Naesala, I absolutely _refuse_ to do anything physical with Vika! That would be completely--"

"But I thought yesterday you said you had these feelings of wanting to?" Naesala smirked. "Come now. A gentle kiss on the cheek couldn't hurt."

Reyson could only huff in response. By this point they were now walking toward the garden. The sky was overcast, but the air was still warm enough for an enjoyable outdoor excursion.

"Besides, Reyson, you have it so easy!" the raven continued. "Everyone is encouraging you to go for Vika! When I tried to woo Leanne everyone was against me. That made it so much harder, but of course it was most worth it. I still think that deep down inside you approve of us being together."

"You still have a lot to prove, Naesala," Reyson replied. "What about when you go out and steal things from--" Then he stopped because he realized that someone else was in the garden with them.

The timing just seemed too perfect. Naesala had no clue that Vika was going to be in the garden, wearing a flattering red dress, at the same time that he and Reyson were out discussing relationships. Then Naesala glanced up to see Leanne slipping away.

_She must have planned it,_ he thought with a grin. _You good girl!_

Meanwhile, Reyson was temporarily stunned by Vika's beauty. "V-Vika? H-how come you are dressed up so... so... nice?"

She looked down in embarrassment. "Princess Leanne wanted me to try it on..."

Naesala used Reyson's current distraction to slip away. He snuck behind the bushes to find Leanne hiding, peeping out with delight. She smiled at Naesala as he sat down next to her.

"We playing dress-up and I see you and Reyson going to garden," she explained, "so I lead Vika here first."

"Leanne, you're amazing," Naesala whispered. "Now they're alone and will have no choice but to confess their love for each other!" _And now I can snatch Leanne away and propose to her while everyone else is preoccupied!_

However, Leanne had other plans. "Watch?" she pleaded softly.

"Okay, but just for a little bit." He put an arm around her as he peered out from behind the bushes. Reyson was looking around frantically.

"Wh-where did Naesala go? He was here just a second ago!"

Vika glanced around. "Come to think of it, Princess Leanne disappeared, too," she remarked.

Reyson's face melted into a look of disgust. "They were planning this," he muttered.

"What do you mean?" asked Vika.

Reyson shook his head and sighed. "Nothing. Come on, I'll take you back--"

"No, wait!" Vika blurted. Then she blushed. "I mean, I-I've been meaning to tell you something."

Reyson's face quickly matched the shade of hers. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"Um, well, I... I'm glad I met you, Reyson."

Naesala groaned softly. "Come on, that's so lame."

Leanne wrinkled her nose. "I tell her be more romantic. She being shy."

"I think we need to spice things up a little." Naesala crawled over to a nearby cherry tree and gently shook it, causing the pink petals to rain down on Vika and Reyson. However, they both jumped at the sound of the rustling leaves, and Vika involuntarily grabbed onto Reyson in fear.

"Wh-what was that?" she squeaked.

Naesala quickly rejoined Leanne and grinned. "That's more like it!" he whispered.

Reyson glanced up at the tree. "It must have been a squirrel. Nothing to worry about." His arms had wrapped around her protectively, and when he realized it he froze.

Vika looked up at him and laughed. "You've got petals in your hair," she noted. "Here, I'll get them out." She reached up into his hair but then stopped once his long, blond strands were tangled in her fingers. "I-it's so soft," she murmured.

_Must be a heron tribe thing_, Naesala thought as he began fingering through Leanne's hair.

Now both Vika and Reyson were frozen in each other's arms, eyes locked, with Vika's fingers entangled in his hair and his face only a few inches away from hers.

Then Reyson's expression softened into a loving gaze. "Vika," he whispered, "you're the first woman I've met whom I have been unable to stop thinking about. I just... I don't know how to put it into words."

Vika smiled. "I've been the same way about you. You and I just relate to each other so well..."

_He's almost worse than me as far as cheesy lines go,_ Naesala thought.

Leanne giggled softly. "They so cute..."

Suddenly, Naesala realized that Reyson had leaned in forward for a kiss. Vika wrapped her arms around his neck.

"About time," Leanne whispered.

Of course, the moment did not last long because then Reyson realized what he was doing and quickly pulled away. "Oh! Oh goodness! I'm sorry!" he exclaimed. "I'm so sorry! I don't know what came over me. That was so improper! Please, Vika, don't think that I'm that physical! I'm normally not so... Oh, I'm so sorry!"

"What the hell?" Naesala stared at the scene in shock. "Why the hell is he apologizing? She probably wanted that!"

Leanne shook her head. "Oh, Reyson... He still have much to learn!"


	12. Chapter 12: Company

_Merry Christmas all! Here's a late present for you. And it's long so you'll enjoy that!_

* * *

Chapter 12 -- Company, In Which Vika's Friends Come to Retrieve Her

After Reyson and Vika shared their first kiss, they were fairly quiet for the rest of the day. Naesala and Leanne decided to leave them alone (at Naesala's suggestion, since he was still desperate to propose to the heron princess before the day was out), so they went to another part of the garden.

_This could be my only opportunity for a while_, Naesala thought. _Deep breaths. You can do it._ He turned to Leanne and grinned. "So, now that we're finally alone... would you like to go to the beach?"

Leanne blinked at this question. "Beach? Why go to beach? Cloudy sky."

Naesala looked up. Sure enough, a white cloud blanket was covering the sky. _Dammit! That's not romantic at all! But this could be my only chance..._ "Ah, well, it's not sunny, so well... you know, you won't get sunburned."

"Oh! Yes, I like idea!" She smiled. "I not think of that."

_Perfect!_ He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward him so he could pick her up. "I'll carry you, if you don't mind."

At this point she didn't protest to his insistence on carrying her through the air. She hopped into his arms as he lifted off from the ground with ease.

_Finally... I can finally make her little visit count! Reyson couldn't possibly protest at this point. _He grinned in satisfaction.

Suddenly, Leanne giggled. "You all right? You heart beating very fast."

"What? Oh..." Naesala gulped. _Am I really getting nervous about this? It's not like she would possibly say no..._

"Oh no. Nealuchi following us," she whispered. She pointed behind him.

"Are you kidding me?" Naesala turned around, and sure enough, the old crow was frantically fluttering after them. "It better not be anything important," he muttered. He slowed down to let his caretaker catch up.

"Nestling! You have to return to the castle immediately!" Nealuchi shouted. "Tormod and Muarim are approaching the island! They're coming for Vika!"

The raven king groaned. "Damn! They picked a horrible time!" He looked down at Leanne. "Sorry, love, we'll have to go back for now."

"I hope they let Vika stay," she replied softly.

They returned to the castle and waited for Vika's friends to arrive. Nealuchi suggested that they be as hospitable as possible in order to help ease the tension. He led the angry beorc and tiger into the throne room, where Naesala was waiting. He had no idea where Vika was at the moment, but he had a feeling that she was somewhere with Reyson.

Tormod burst into the room and stormed over to him. "All right, where's Vika? You better not have done anything mean to her or I'll--"

"Calm down, little one." Muarim followed behind the hot-headed beorc. "Remember, we are dealing with the ravens."

"Please, you act like I'm some sort of criminal." Naesala casually waved his hand. "Vika's a raven, too. Why would we do anything bad to our own kind? And honestly, we brought her _home_."

"Against her will!" Tormod crossed his arms in defiance. "Now, you give her back, or we'll fight you!"

Naesala couldn't help but laugh. "You must be joking. You wouldn't stand a chance. But if you insist..." He gestured to Nealuchi. "Go hunt her down. She's probably in the garden somewhere."

"You mean you don't even know where she is?!"

Naesala patted the redhead on the shoulder. "What, did you think we were keeping her prisoner or something? We actually had quite a lovely time. We had tea parties and singing concerts and other fun activities."

Muarim nodded. "See, little one, I told you there was nothing to worry about."

"Well, there is _one_ small thing I should warn you about," Naesala added.

Tormod's eyes rose. "What?"

The raven king smirked. "I don't think she'll want to be leaving any time soon. You'll have to see for yourself."

The mage was about to angrily protest when Reyson and Vika entered with Nealuchi. Vika's eyes lit up on seeing her two friends, and she eagerly ran over to them.

"Tormod! Muarim! What are you two doing here?" she asked as she gave each of them a hug.

_Why is she so eager? She's not supposed to be that eager! She's supposed to be upset that she has to leave her true love for who knows how long!_ Naesala managed to keep his face calm, though inside his guts were squirming in anticipation.

Tormod grinned in triumph. "When those two ravens kidnapped you away, Muarim and I decided to go after you and rescue you! But we couldn't get a boat right away because all the sailors were too afraid to sail so close to Kilvas."

"For good reason," Naesala muttered with a smirk.

"But we finally managed to get a boat," Tormod continued, "and we came here. You can come back with us now!"

At this comment, Vika's face fell, as did Reyson's. "N-now?"

_Ah, that's more like it._ Naesala stepped over to Reyson and nudged him in the side. "Come on. Now's your chance, you little lovebird."

Reyson quickly frowned at him and then walked over to Vika. "A-are you sure you wouldn't rather stay a day or two?" he asked. "After all, you have come such a long way. Vika hasn't had any time to pack!"

"She didn't come with anything," Tormod replied. "She was _kidnapped_, Prince Reyson." Then he glanced around the room and saw Leanne smiling in the corner of the room. "By the way, Prince Reyson, why are _you_ here?"

Reyson shot a quick glance at Naesala. "It's a long and complicated story. I'm really just watching out for my sister."

Leanne hopped over to them. "Vika so nice! We have lots of fun dress-up, right, Vika?"

"Y-yeah, that was fun..."

"I think you stay for dinner at least," the heron princess continued. "I want spend more time with Vika. Reyson does, too."

Reyson blushed at that statement. "W-well, Leanne, you can't be pushy..."

Muarim scanned over the assembled laguz and then nodded. "I think we should accept your offer and stay, at least for the night. After all, it would be rude to refuse such willing hospitality."

Tormod was about to protest, but then he changed his mind when Muarim gave him a stern look.

Naesala cleared his throat. "Well, if everyone is in agreement, I believe we should hold an extravagant feast for you. Nealuchi? Have the cooks prepare the finest meal they can come up with!"

The old crow nodded and left the room.

"A feast? Right now?" Tormod eyed the raven king suspiciously.

"Why not? Besides, you must be hungry after traveling such a long way!"

The mage looked down at his stomach and gulped. "Yeah... I guess you're right."

For the next hour they chatted about various topics, such as the weather in Begnion and other items of small talk until the food was finished. The whole time Naesala kept an eye on Reyson and Vika, hoping that they'd mention something to Tormod and Muarim about their newly-budding relationship. However, the two lovebirds seemed too nervous to say anything even slightly broaching the topic of love.

Nealuchi finally walked in and led the party to the dining hall, which was not nearly as grand as the one in Gallia, but it was there just in case anyone felt like visiting Kilvas. In other words, it was rarely ever used unless Naesala felt like using it.

The old crow, being such a clever crow, forced everyone to sit in certain seats. He moved Vika next to Reyson, across from Tormod and Muarim.

"So this seat next to me will be for Leanne, I assume?" Naesala whispered as Nealuchi ushered him to his seat.

"Oh, no, Nestling. Princess Leanne must sit on the other side of Vika for moral support!" the old crow replied with a chuckle. "Besides, if you sit next to her then you will get distracted, and you won't be able to help Prince Reyson out at all!"

"What?! That's not fair!" the raven king protested. _But he does have a point... damn, I hate it when he's right..._

"Now now, Nestling. You'll have time to propose la--"

"Shut up. Go show Leanne to her seat." Naesala frowned and plopped into his seat with a huff. _I have to focus on getting Vika to stay longer... The proposal will have to wait for now. I'm not sure how I'll be able to do that, though..._

Leanne was all the way on the other side of the table next to Vika. She waved at Naesala as she sat down and then mouthed the words, "We helping Vika now. We have plenty time to hold hands under table later."

This cheered Naesala up somewhat.

The main course for dinner was freshly-caught salmon. Tormod was upset at first, since he had grown up on more Gallian dishes like steak and venison. However, he soon found himself enjoying the fish, eating several helpings. Leanne finally decided to start conversation, directing attention to herself by giggling innocently.

"Tormod eat so much food! I not each too much food," Leanne explained. "I so little. Vika eat much food?"

The raven girl snapped out of her loving gaze. "Ah, well... it depends. I don't eat as much as Tormod and Muarim, though." Then she turned to Muarim. "So, Muarim, how did the last mission go? When I left you were doing pretty well with spying on the villa."

"Yes, the mission was a success. It would have gone even better if we'd had a flying unit, though." Muarim nodded toward Vika. "However, it seems you had a good time here. I see you have become good friends with the heron royals."

Vika blushed and glanced over at Reyson, who had frozen in embarrassment. "Y-yes, friends..."

_Finally!_ Naesala grinned. _Dammit, Reyson, SAY SOMETHING!_

The heron prince swallowed what was in his mouth. "It has been a pleasure having Vika in our company. A-are you sure you wouldn't mind staying a few more days?"

Tormod perked up. "Stay a few more days? But we have to get back to Begnion! We have three more missions to complete before we can take any kind of break."

Vika's shoulders slumped at this news. "Oh, I forgot about that. I was hoping we could stay..."

Muarim looked back and forth between Reyson and Vika. Naesala could tell that at least the tiger was catching on to what had happened.

Leanne gasped at the realization of a great new plan. She caught Naesala's eye before suggesting her newest scheme.

"Maybe Reyson help you out? Reyson sing to refresh! Then you all have better time freeing slaves!" Her eyes were sparkling. Then she turned to Reyson. "You not mind. Nealuchi take me back to Gallia, so you not have worry about me. You go help Vika and friends!"

Reyson's face glowed for a moment in hope, as did Vika's.

"We could use the support of the herons," Muarim muttered. "What do you think, Tormod?"

"Sure." The mage was too preoccupied with his fifth helping of fish.

_Reyson gets to spend more time with Vika. Good idea, Leanne!_ Naesala nodded at Leanne. _And this would also get rid of Reyson for a few days, so that by the time he would return he would find that his sister has a dashing new fiancé!_

Reyson seemed to be able to read Naesala's mind, for as soon as the raven king came to that realization his face fell. "Wait a minute... I can't leave Leanne here by herself. As much as I would love to help in the emancipation of laguz slaves, I do not feel confident leaving my sister alone with... well, here for too long." He shot a glare at Naesala.

"Oh, come on, Reyson! I've been good so far! Go with Vika!" he replied.

"Yes, go with Vika!" Leanne agreed. "Not worry. I behave!"

Reyson groaned. "I'll think about it... We have until tomorrow to decide on all of this for certain."

At this point everyone had finished their dinner. Tormod had eaten a total of seven helpings of food and was far too stuffed to really notice what was going on anymore. Nealuchi entered the room again to ask about dessert, though everyone had eaten too much to have any room for more food.

"Nealuchi!" Naesala stood up. "Would you please escort our distinguished guests to their rooms?"

"Yes, Nestling. Right this way." The old crow led Tormod and Muarim out of the room. Reyson and Vika followed closely behind.

_Excellent! This will give me more time!_ Naesala looked over to see that now the room was completely empty except for him and Leanne. The heron princess ran over to him excitedly.

"I think it work!" she exclaimed. "Vika staying one more day, and maybe Reyson going with them!"

"Now now, Leanne. We'll have to take this one step at a time. I think it's going to take a lot of convincing in order to persuade the redheaded mage. And Reyson still has doubts about us." He patted her shoulder. "You've been handling that part pretty well so far, though!"

She smiled at the comment. "I learn from you!"

Naesala glanced out the window. It was still light enough out for him to take her to the beach. "Well, Leanne, do you still want to go to the beach? Looks like we have some time for now."

"Okay!" She jumped into his arms once again, and he flew out of the window, heading toward the beach.


	13. Chapter 13: At Last

_Wow sorry again about the delay, but I'm hoping the wait was worth it because at last, there is going to be a proposal! Also, this is the second-to-last chapter. Chapter 14 is currently in production so hopefully it won't be much longer. My goal is to have it up by Valentine's Day. Figured that would be an appropriate day! :D_

* * *

Chapter 13 -- At Last, In Which... FINALLY!

Naesala gently landed in the sand at the cove where he and Leanne had sat and watched the sunset only a week ago. She giggled when she recognized where she was.

"So pretty," she whispered. She slipped out of his arms and onto the ground, though her hand still lingered in his.

_Right. Now what do I do?_ Naesala could feel his heartbeat begin to increase rapidly. _Do I just ask her right now or do I lead up to it or something? Should I give some kind of speech telling her about how much I love her? Well, she probably already knows that... but what if she doesn't?_

"Naesala? You staring at rock there for long time." Leanne tugged on his jacket. "Why you staring at rock?"

"Oh, I'm uh... I'm thinking," he mumbled. _Then again, a little speech would be pretty romantic..._ He pulled her closer to him and kissed her forehead. "Leanne, I have something to tell you."

She blinked in confusion. "Something bad?"

"No, of course not!"

"Then why you look serious?"

He grinned. "Because I'm going to be serious for once." He took both of her hands and cupped his around them. "But it's a good thing. Trust me."

"I trusting you," she whispered. "What you saying?"

_Say something good. Don't say anything stupid._ "Leanne, you're the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me in my entire life." _Dammit, that was stupid. You just called her a 'thing!'_ "I mean, you're the most wonderful person who has ever... Well, you get what I mean, right?"

She blushed as she giggled. "All I understand is that I wonderful. That all I need understand. But why you telling me?"

"Because I love you. I love you so much... You've always been so kind and sweet, and I never want you to leave my side." He took a deep breath. _I'm not really sure what I just said, but it's true. Maybe if I just keep talking something good will happen._

Leanne's face continued to grow a brighter shade of red. "I love you, too. You make me so happy."

Naesala smiled at that. "I want to make you happy for the rest of your life, then." _Now do I pop the question? Man maybe I should have asked Nealuchi after all..._

Leanne stepped closer to him and pulled his hands over her heart. "I wanting to stay... stay around you for long time. Remember in Gallia? I wanting to live with you."

_This is true... We did kind of hint at marriage back then._ A little voice inside of him was screaming, "ASK HER YOU IDIOT! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR??"

"Naesala? You hands getting... wet." She squirmed a little. "You nervous. I sensoring it."

_Great. I'm sweating. This is slowly becoming less romantic._ "Ah, well, you know... being around the ocean makes things, er... wet."

Leanne shook her head. "You so nervous. I never see you this nervous."

"Okay, you got me. I can't argue with you, since you can so easily sense my feelings." Naesala sighed in defeat. "Well, I won't drag this out much longer, otherwise something will end up interrupting us as usual." He managed to keep a calm face, though inside his stomach was beginning to run an obstacle course. Then he slowly knelt down on one knee, keeping her tiny hands in his.

Leanne's eyes widened. "Wh-what you..."

"Leanne, will you marry me?"

Leanne was speechless for a moment. Then her mouth formed the words, "Yes, I marry you," though she was too excited to get any sound out. Her eyes teared up as she finally was able to say, "Yes! Yes yes yes!"

Naesala grinned. He knew she was going to say yes, yet the sound of her actually saying it filled him with such a happiness he had never felt before. He shoved a hand into his pocket to give her the ring. Then he froze as the sudden realization hit him.

"Dammit! I left the ring back in my room!" he shouted.

Leanne wrinkled her nose. "Ring? What you talking about?"

"The engagement ring... I had it all picked out and everything..." He groaned. "I was hoping this would all be perfect..."

"It good enough for me," she whispered, wiping a tear from her eye. "I hoping you ask before I leave! Oh, Naesala, I so happy now!" She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him as tight as she could, crying into his shoulder.

"I'm hoping those are tears of joy, darling," he told her as he kissed her cheek. "When we go back I'll slip into my room and grab the ring."

Leanne shook her head. "Can we... stay here for little while? We never get alone time now."

"Of course, darling. But not too long... otherwise your dear brother will get suspicious."

She giggled. "He distracted by Vika. We have time, I think." She lightly reached up and kissed him.

_Finally! Now once I give her the ring everything will be official! And Reyson couldn't _possibly_ have anything negative to say because we're actually going to get married!_ Naesala kissed her back. "Let's watch the sunset, darling."

They sat down on the sand, but this time Naesala moved Leanne far enough away so that a monstrous wave wouldn't be able to attack them like last time. For a few minutes they just watched the waves in silence. Suddenly, Leanne must have realized that engagement meant a wedding would soon follow, and she eagerly began planning out how everything would go.

"We have wedding in Serenes!" she exclaimed. "Right under pretty trees, and I have pretty dress and carry pretty flowers! Reyson be best man, right?"

"Of course. I don't think he'd let me pick anyone else," Naesala replied with a laugh. "What about your maid of honor?"

"Vika! And we invite Nealuchi and Tibarn and Janaff and Ulki and Ranulf and Lethe and Lyre and Skrimir and Tormod and Muarim and--"

"Darling, I'll never be able to remember all those names. Besides, wouldn't you rather have a smaller wedding?" Naesala only said this because he knew that more than half of the guest list probably hated him to begin with. "It would be much more... intimate."

Leanne thought that over for a moment. "Small... still be pretty?"

"Of course."

Leanne beamed. "Pretty white lilies. I still think hawks should come because they good friends."

Naesala sighed. "I suppose so..." _Hopefully Janaff won't cause any trouble..._

After a few more minutes they decided to fly back before it became too dark for them to see. Naesala carried her to the balcony of his room and landed softly on the stone floor.

"Wait here. I'll get the ring, okay?"

She grinned. "I get ring! I so excited!"

_Now that I think about it, she doesn't wear much jewelry,_ Naesala thought as he wandered through his room to the box where he had hidden the ring. He pulled the box from under his bed and took out the ring. Then he returned it to her and slipped it onto her left ring finger. She gasped when she saw it.

"It... it so pretty!" she exclaimed. She held up her hand and watched the emerald sparkle in the remaining sunlight. Her eyes teared up a little as she took in the moment of what was going on.

Naesala, meanwhile, was inwardly sighing with relief. _She likes it... Thank goodness she actually likes it!_

Leanne turned to him and wiped the tears out of her eyes. "Now we tell people?"

"Ah..." Naesala froze. _I guess we do have to tell people eventually... Well, I must say I am looking forward to Reyson's reaction, mainly his look of disbelief._ "All right, Leanne. Let's go tell everyone." He took her hand and led her to the throne room, where Reyson and Nealuchi were waiting.

"Oh, Nestling, there you are!" The old crow smiled. "We were wondering where you had gone. Little Tormod seems to like it here, so I'm sure he will want to stay a few days, meaning that Vika will be here, as well." Reyson's eyes lit up as the last part was mentioned.

"That's good, Nealuchi," Naesala muttered. "Now, Leanne and I have good news for the two of you!"

Reyson, who was still in a happy mood because of the Vika situation, eagerly asked, "Oh, what is it?"

Leanne giggled and held out her left hand, palm down so everyone could see the ring. "We getting married!"

Reyson's jaw dropped, though Nealuchi was clapping in excitement.

"Oh, congratulations, both of you!" the old crow exclaimed. "Nestling and Princess Leanne, married at last! Do you two realize how long I've been waiting for this to happen?"

"Nealuchi, we're not married _yet_... We just got engaged!" Naesala replied. "We haven't even set a date or anything!"

"Well, you must do that right away! Everyone will be so excited for the announcement!" Nealuchi fluttered his wings in joy. "Prince Reyson, aren't you happy? Your sister and your best friend are going to be married!"

Reyson was still frozen in the same position, mouth wide open with a disbelieving stare. Naesala was perfectly satisfied. Finally, the heron prince took a deep breath.

"I don't know what to say. I guess I'm happy for you, Leanne. I'm just in shock!"

"What do you mean, Reyson? Don't tell me you didn't expect me to propose to her eventually," Naesala told him with a smirk.

"I just didn't think it would happen so... so soon!" Then a smile slowly stretched across his face. "My little sister getting married..." He ran up to her and hugged her.

"Oh, sure. You'll be happy for her but not for me," Naesala joked.

Reyson sighed. "Sure, I'm happy for you, too, Naesala. But I'm happier for Leanne because she's my baby sister."

Just then they heard a loud shout from the hallway, and suddenly Tormod burst into the room.

"You just want us to stay because you're in love with Vika!" he shouted, pointing at Reyson. The heron prince blushed.

"Oh, you just figured that one out?" Naesala remarked. "I'm pretty sure the tiger noticed it a while ago."

Muarim entered behind the young mage. "That is correct, King Naesala. I could tell from the way they were looking at each other."

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Tormod asked, frowning. "We could have convinced them that we don't need to stay and taken Vika with us!"

"That's exactly why he didn't tell you," Naesala replied. "Besides, what's so bad about Reyson and Vika being together?"

"Vika's... well, she's one of us! She won't be able to help out if she's hanging out with _him_ all the time!" He glared at Reyson, whose face was now beet-red in embarrassment.

Vika finally made her way into the room. "Tormod, really, it's not a bad thing! I'll still help you guys out! Reyson likes the idea of the Laguz Emancipation Army!"

Reyson nodded. "I wouldn't keep Vika from doing what she loves. If she leaves the army, it will be by her choice, not by mine."

Tormod sighed. "Well... fine, but..."

Leanne, sensing the growing tension in the room, extended her left hand and beamed. "Naesala and I engaged!" she exclaimed.

"Ah, congratulations!" Muarim told her.

Vika smiled. "Oh, that's so wonderful! I'm so happy for you!" She gave Leanne a hug. Then she turned to Tormod. "See, now you can't use the excuse that Reyson's a heron and I'm a raven. Leanne and King Naesala don't come from the same clan, but they're still getting married!"

"But Vika!" Tormod put on a pouty face. "Can't you just leave with us now and visit Reyson some other time?"

Muarim patted the redhead on the shoulder. "Little one, it's no use. Let her be with Prince Reyson. Don't you want her to be happy?"

"Yeah, but--"

Naesala grinned. "Well, Reyson, now do you know how I felt when you wouldn't let me be with your sister?"

"That was different. You were being... inappropriate around her." Reyson sighed. "Tormod, I promise I will let Vika go with you. It's just that, well... we've only known each other for a short time, and we want to get to know each other even more."

"That sounds dirty, Rey--"

Nealuchi whacked Naesala on the back of the head. "Not now, Nestling."

Vika walked over to Tormod. "Tormod, how about I stay here for another day, and then tomorrow we'll all leave for Begnion to complete the mission? Then whenever we're off duty I can go visit Reyson. Is that okay?"

The little mage sighed. "I guess..."

Muarim nodded. "I think that is a fair deal. Prince Reyson is an honorable man."

"Thank you." Reyson smiled at Tormod. "You are brave, Tormod. I've always admired the goals of the Laguz Emancipation Army ever since Vika told me about it."

Tormod's eyes lit up. "Really?" He, Reyson, Muarim, and Vika soon began eagerly discussing the army and its recent missions. Naesala used the opportunity to pull Leanne aside and kiss her on the cheek.

"I think everything finally settled," she whispered with a giggle. "Now we able to relax!"

"That's for sure." They kissed softly.

That night Naesala plopped down into his bed and breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

_I'm finally engaged, and Reyson and Vika are together... The whole purpose of this adventure is finally complete! And Reyson seems to approve for once. I guess since we'll be getting married he won't have to worry about me misbehaving! Though it will be weird not having anything fun to plot about for a while..._


	14. Chapter The Last: The Wedding

_Waah, it's the end! I don't know what I'm going to do with myself now! (that's a lie.. I have a ton of other stories to update...) But I hope you all enjoy the final chapter of _Fourteen More Days_! Thank you to everyone who has been reading and reviewing. You guys are awesome!_

* * *

Chapter The Last -- The Wedding, In Which This is The End

"Naesala, wake up!"

"Nestling, hurry up and get dressed!"

Naesala groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. "Go away," he mumbled. "It's too early..."

He heard the door burst open, and soon someone was shaking him roughly. "You are _not_ going to be late for this! You've only got two hours until the wedding starts!"

"Dammit!" Naesala shot up and threw the pillow at Reyson, who had backed away in surprise. "That's today! How could I forget? How could I _oversleep_ on a day like this?"

Reyson shook his head and sighed. "How am I letting you marry my sister?"

Naesala sprang out of bed and ushered Reyson out of the room so he could get dressed. Then he yawned as he meticulously fixed up his hair. It had been two years since he had proposed to Leanne, and now they were finally going to get married. The wedding would have been sooner, except that this small issue called the war had arisen and delayed things (for more information on said war, please refer to _Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn_). The wedding was going to take place today in Serenes Forest, since (SPOILER) all of the bird tribes lived there now.

Naesala checked himself in the mirror one last time and nodded with approval. _Still sexy,_ he thought with a grin. Then he left his small but luxurious cottage and joined up with Nealuchi and Reyson.

Nealuchi chuckled as he approached them. "That certainly was quick, Nestling! It only took you about fifteen minutes to get ready!"

"Well of course it did. This is the most important day of my life!" Naesala exclaimed.

Reyson rolled his eyes. "Only _you_ would oversleep on the day of your wedding."

"Nonsense, Reyson!" the raven replied. "I'm sure lots of people do it! You will, too, when you and Vika finally get married. Speaking of, have you even proposed to her yet?"

Reyson froze and turned a shade paler, if that is even possible. "N-not yet... I get too shy," he mumbled.

Naesala grinned. "You should get onto that."

They were walking toward the center of the forest, where flower wreaths and ribbons had been hung to decorate the trees. Leanne, of course, had been in charge of this decoration, but she wouldn't let Naesala help because she didn't want him to see it until the wedding day.

The raven smiled as he recognized his fiancée's handiwork. _She did a great job with this, just like at that party in Gallia._

Suddenly, someone's hands covered his eyes, and he was being dragged along through the forest.

"That was close!" he heard Janaff's voice say. "Leanne was just about to walk right by you!"

"So? She said I could see the decorations today!"

"But you can't see _her_ yet! It's bad luck to see the bride in her wedding dress before the wedding takes place!" Janaff explained. He finally lifted his hands from Naesala's face and grinned in triumph.

"I've never heard of that," Naesala muttered. "Is that some hawk custom or something?"

However, Janaff ignored him because Ulki had joined them now. The younger hawk spotted Naesala and reached into a pouch that was hanging at his belt.

"I believe this belongs to you?" He held out a small garden snake.

Naesala's eyes widened. "The stalker snake?! How the hell did it end up here? Keep it away from Leanne at all costs!"

"This snake has been causing havoc in Phoenicis for quite some time now," Ulki continued. "This species is not native to our old island, but I believe they are quite common in Kilvas."

"Then take it back to Kilvas. The stupid little thing likes to wrap itself around Leanne's leg, and it freaks her out." Naesala grabbed the snake from Ulki and glared at it. "Then again, maybe we'll send you to Gallia. I'm sure the cats would love to have a pet snake."

Janaff made a pouting face. "But I like the snake! Ulki, you said I could keep it as a pet!"

"You keep slipping it into everyone's beds!"

Naesala stretched his wings and stared up at the blue sky through the canopy of branches. _I just can't believe this day is finally here... It's taken so long to get to this point..._

Finally it was time for the ceremony to start. The crowd was a medium size. Several members of the hawk and raven tribes were there, as well as all of the heron family. Lyre, Lethe, Ranulf, Mordecai, and Skrimir were also in attendance, and Sanaki had come with Micaiah and Sothe. Naesala stood up front, attempting to look as cool as possible while inside his heart was thumping excitedly in anticipation of seeing Leanne. When he spotted her on the other side of the clearing with King Lorazieh his heart skipped a beat.

Leanne's veil was decorated with lilies and pink ribbon, and her dress hung snugly around her torso before gently billowing out from her waist. She hugged her bouquet of lilies to her chest as she caught his eye. He grinned at her, but she ended up crying anyway as she walked down the isle. Lorazieh was beaming as well as he walked with his daughter. Leanne stopped next to Naesala, kissed her father on the cheek, and then slipped a hand into Naesala's palm.

The ceremony seemed to fly by. The only thing Naesala really remembered was saying "I do" and sliding the wedding ring onto Leanne's finger. The rest was all a blur filled with the happiness of at last being able to say that Leanne was his wife. The feeling of her warm hand in his helped him remember that this was not just a dream, that this was actually happening at last.

At the wedding banquet everything became much less formal. The stalker snake somehow escaped from Ulki, but instead of attacking Leanne it had begun going after Lyre.

"Get it off of me!" Lyre whined. "I don't like being attacked by food!"

Lethe rolled her eyes. "Just give me the damn snake." She yanked it off of her sister's leg and transformed into her cat form. The snake began wriggling helplessly, but within seconds it became her lunch. Janaff saw the whole event unfold and began to pout. Ulki congratulated Lethe and ended up having to promise Lyre one dance with her after she danced with Ranulf.

As Leanne and Naesala took the floor (or in this case, grass) for their first dance, she leaned toward him and whispered, "I still remember dancing you teach me."

"That's good," he replied softly, "because we're going to be the hottest couple out here."

"Of course we be hottest couple! That why everyone come here!" She smiled and took his hand as he grabbed her waist.

As the afternoon continued, Naesala found that he at least enjoyed one of the hawk wedding traditions. Every time someone tapped their glass, Leanne and Naesala had to kiss. Janaff explained the tradition to him and then proceeded to tap his glass before every dance. Lyre then joined in because she liked the sound of tapping on glass.

"I like this tradition. I think the ravens and herons should adopt it as well," Naesala whispered to Leanne after the tenth time.

"You tell that to Reyson. I want see his face."

Naesala grinned and walked over to Reyson. The heron prince's face turned a deep rose color.

"Reyson, when _are_ you going to propose to Vika?" Naesala then asked. "I'm sure she's beginning to wonder if you'll ever do it."

"I will... I-I have the ring!" Reyson's blush darkened as he pulled a tiny box out of his pocket. The ring was gold and decorated with three small rubies. However, like Leanne's engagement ring had been, it was not overly elaborate.

"That's a good choice of color for her," Naesala remarked. "So, what are you waiting for?"

"Nerves..."

"Oh please, Reyson. It's not like her older brother is watching over _you_ like a vulture!" Naesala smirked. "If I could do it then you should be able to propose to Vika with no problem!"

"Yeah..."

Leanne had wandered over by this point and eagerly joined in the conversation. "Reyson, you and Vika be engaged by time Naesala and I back from honeymoon!"

"Yes, I agree with Leanne. You have two weeks, starting tomorrow." Naesala patted the flustered heron prince on the back. "Good luck!"

Reyson blinked. "Two weeks? You'll be on your honeymoon for that long?"

"Of course! It's been lucky for us so far, hasn't it, darling?" He heard a tapping sound off in the distance and pulled Leanne toward him for yet another kiss.

"I very much like hawk tradition," she exclaimed. "Reyson, we do tradition at your wedding, too!"

"Ugh, that Janaff..." Reyson sighed but then brightened as he spotted Vika coming toward him. "If you'll excuse me," he told them. "I promised Vika that I would let her teach me how to dance."

"You mean you don't know, either?" Naesala sighed. "You herons... How could you not learn the fine art of dancing?"

Reyson rolled his eyes and left them to join Vika.

As the sun was setting, the guests began to leave to get a good night's sleep before setting off for their own homes. Leanne and Naesala thanked everyone for coming, even though most of the guests had been friends of Leanne.

Then Leanne sighed and leaned against Naesala. "Finally over. Now we relax..."

"Relax? Darling... the night is still young!" He grinned.

"I know. I mean relax... ah... be lone?" She giggled in embarrassment at not being able to remember the right word for what she wanted to say.

"Oh, you mean relax as in spend time alone together?"

"That right!"

He kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Let's go home, darling. I just cleaned so everything's ready for us."

Leanne smiled as he picked her up and carried her back to his cottage. Once he had shut the door behind him he knew that they were alone. For once there was no way anyone or anything could interrupt them. Of course, since this fiction is rated T, what they did once the door was shut cannot be described in any great detail.

Let's just say that they had the best night of their lives.

Leanne and Naesala spent their honeymoon at the garden in Kilvas, in what Naesala had dubbed "the honeymoon hut." Leanne told him that she knew what the hut had been for, though Naesala could tell that she was still surprised. One morning, on the fifth day of their honeymoon, they felt too lazy to go out and spent time in the garden. Instead they lay in bed and watched the butterflies dance among the flowers outside the window.

"Naesala, I have question," Leanne asked as she leaned her head against his chest.

"What is it, darling?"

"I wondering... when we have kids, they be heron or raven?"

Naesala thought for a moment. "That is a good question." They were planning on having kids at some point, possibly once they had settled down in Serenes again. _I'm pretty sure Reyson is worried about my abilities as a father. It can't be that hard, can it?_ He sighed and began playing with one of Leanne's curls. "I suppose they would be a mix. They'd be able to sing really well, and they'd be naturally mischievous."

Leanne laughed. "Reyson and Vika have same problem, then. Reyson have fun with that..."

"Oh, darling, I forgot to mention..." He reached over to the table next to the bed and grabbed a letter that was laying there. "Nealuchi dropped this off last night after you fell asleep. It's a letter from Reyson."

She peered over to read it. Then she squealed with delight. "Finally! Reyson propose to Vika! She say yes!"

"I wonder how nervous he was. Maybe Nealuchi could tell me." Naesala put the letter back. "I guess we'll have another wedding to attend soon after we get back."

Leanne snuggled closer to him. "So nice being able to relax. I so happy to be with you at last. I happiest than ever been before. And you right about one thing."

"What is that?"

She grinned. "Sleeping naked _very_ comfortable."

"I told you, darling." He kissed the top of her head. "Soon you'll love sleeping in late, too."

"We still watch sunrise _sometimes_, right?"

"Of course, but you'll have to wake me up. You know how late I sleep!"

They snuggled together, enjoying the peace and quiet, as well as each other's company. It was the beginning of a new life for them, and they could only foresee happiness in their future. Naesala could also foresee several children, though in reality they would only end up having two. But for now, they decided not to worry about having to deal with real life again. For now they just wanted to enjoy this moment of pure, uninterrupted joy.

"I love you, Leanne," he whispered in her ear.

She gazed up at him and smiled. "I love you, too, Naesala."

They kissed slowly, listening to the sounds of sparrows and the gentle breeze that was wandering through the garden. From now on they would be together forever, and that was the most satisfying part of all.

**_FIN._**


End file.
